Hello everyone!


Wow, what a great and crazy week it has been! First off, I have my lovely new companion and trainee, Sister W! Goodness I just adore her already! She's from Pelham, Georgia. She is doing work already! I'm such a mean trainer! Haha we were in the apartment Wednesday night trying to figure our lives out, and I was so bored! So we decided to go tract in our neighborhood, and I made her do the approach on the third door! But she was such a natural! She is already talking to everyone she meets, and her love for the people is already through the roof.

Our second day in the area, we went to a townhouse complex that a few potentials. The majority weren't interested, but we did get a referral from one of them to try their neighbor, M! So we went right over, and she let us right in! We showed her the Because of Him video, and she loved it! She moved to Canada from Haiti, and she has attended church off and on. She really wants to bring her kids to church! We set up a time to come back that Saturday, and we left on top of the world! Sister Ws' second day in the field, and we found a new investigator! Proof that the Lord qualifies whom he calls, because I am so incapable! But He has helped us see some great things in this area already. We met with M again on Saturday, and the lesson was a bit crazy. Haha but she loved it, and her kids are beyond excited to come to church! We feel really good about her.

Saturday was D'S BAPTISM! My heart is just bursting with joy about this guy! The baptism was so so good! The ward did the entire program, and D even bore his testimony! It was the sweetest thing! He kept thanking us for finding him and saying how badly he wants others to find the church too! I am so grateful to have been able to experience watching him enter the waters of baptism. I can't even describe the feelings that I had, it's just too incredible to express. This is why we do it! This is the whole reason that we wake up every morning and push through the rejection, to find the ONE who is ready! I feel so blessed to have played a part in finding and teaching such a dedicated and kind man. 

Sundays in this area is INSANITY! Since we cover two wards, it's like a marathon! We start with G Ward Council at 7:30 am, then church starts at 9. Then we sneak out of Relief Society at 11:45 to go to R Ward Council. Then church starts at 1, and we go until 4. And we finish off with R Ward Coordination meeting until 4:45. I'm exhausted just typing it out! Haha but it was so great! Both wards are beyond supportive, and we couldn't ask for a better place to be!

So this week is what I am now referring to as SUPER WEEK!! This is will literally be the busiest week of my mission! So crazy. Here's the breakdown.

Tomorrow-World Wide Missionary Training and exchanges with Sister Hollon
Thursday- Exchanges with Sister Hollon and so many lessons
Friday- MISSION TOUR WITH ELDER ECHOHAWK! SO stoked. 
Saturday- P's baptism!! and a stake Heritage Night
Sunday- another 9 hours of church and meetings!
Monday- BREATHE! hahah

It's going to be insane, but I'm so excited to learn so many things from all of these experiences. Thank you again for always supporting me and your prayers! They are felt and appreciated.

Have a great week! I love you!

Sister Bethany Christensen
#blessed

Hello everyone!

First of all, Alberta cannot make up her mind! Freezing cold to warm
weather in a weeks time! For the record, -40 is as awful as it sounds.
But now I have experienced it and I'll never need to again! Haha

Second of all, I'm off to my last adventure of my mission! I am
training a new missionary!! I am so excited and so nervous all at the
same time! It's going to stretch me in every way I have no doubt, but
it will be exactly what I need to finish strong for the next 3 months.
I have absolutely loved being in Forest Heights! Being in such a
diverse area has taught me so much about how to be a decent human
being and a better representative of Jesus Christ. I will extremely
miss downtown! There are people everywhere all the time! But this new
adventure will teach me many new things.

I'll start with the beginning of the week. Tuesday, we took a road
trip out to CHERRY GROVE!! We felt prompted to have a "grand slam"
exchange, meaning both of us would go out there and work with the sisters. It was so good! We were able to make it in time on Tuesday to go to a lesson with my dear W P! Goodness, I have missed him! haha the lesson was a bit of a gong show, but he does understand that this is meant to change his life. I think he's still got some time to grow, but it's been wonderful to watch his spirituality blossom. Sister R and I had some great adventures on our exchange, but what made it so great was how much we both love that glorious place. Cherry Grove was the area that really helped shape me as a missionary and as a person. The people I met there have truly changed my life, and I am so grateful that I got to go back twice during my time as a Sister Training Leader. I'm seriously so blessed!

Funny moment of the week- we were on Whyte Ave on Saturday doing our
usual booth thing, and there were quite a few missionaries there. All
of a sudden, this guy stops his truck in the middle of the road and
starts quoting the Bible and yelling some not so nice things at us.
After a few seconds of listening, I realized that it was a street
preacher that Sister A and I had talked to a few weeks ago! Of
course the conversation was quite back and forth but we had parted as
friends. So as soon as I recognized him, I shouted, "hey George! How's
it going??" Everyone burst out laughing, and he couldn't help but
smile a bit too. Then he finished off his rant and drove away. There
were about 15 cars lined up behind him by the time he drove off! Haha
it was a funny experience for all us, but it made me realize that
regardless of our differences, when we take the time to build on
common ground and respect each other, there will always be a positive
outcome.

D H is getting baptized on Saturday people!!! His interview
went really well, and he radiates with excitement. P is also set for next Saturday! I'm hoping to be able to make it to both of their baptisms. P is such a good missionary though! We had 8 nonmembers at church and 6 of them were with her family! She is going to be a great member of the church. 

That's all of the time I have today, but I am so grateful for this precious time I have to be the Lord's full-time servant. I still look down at my name tag in shock. Last night, we were street contacting downtown before the Oilers game, skyscrapers all around us, the weather was perfect, and all I could think was, "does it get any better than this??" It truly doesn't! It's my prayer that I can continue to maintain perspective of my purpose as I help this dear new sister discover it. 

Have a great week! I love you all!

Sister Bethany Christensen
#blessed

What an amazing week! Incredible lessons, incredible experiences, freezing cold weather.... Just another day in the life!


Wednesday was such a full day! It start off with teaching P, J, and K. They had all been listening to the Book of Mormon on their phones, and K prayed for the first time in her life!!! She was so excited to tell us!  We taught them the Plan of Salvation, and J is so great! haha after we would teach a principle, he would start talking about the previous principle, and testify to us that it was true! Haha It was the best! He's agreed to be baptized in February! He lives outside the city, so the Elders there have been teaching him. K also asked us in the lesson if we could show her some scriptures on baptism! Ah I just love these humans so much! They are just absorbing the gospel like sponges. And P has been such a great example for them. She's been less active for the last little bit, and this has been a good opportunity for her to be reminded of the testimony she has. 

Wednesday was also the Follow-Up Trainer/Trainee meeting, and Sister A & I were able to give a training on Unity. What a blast! I still remember very vividly when I was at that meeting as a trainee, over a year ago! Time sure does fly. We talked about the importance of being equally yoked together in our companionships. It was great to be able to be open and honest with them about how even with our own companionship, we've struggled! But as long as we have open communication and charity for each other, we can bless our own lives and the lives of those we teach! I've sure learned a lot since living with someone 24/7! And the biggest thing is learning to let the little things go, and be as open as you can. It was a blast to be there with so many new missionaries. It brought back that "greenie" fire for sure!

Update on D- he is still loving the gospel!! We had two lessons with him this week, and we discussed the Word of Wisdom and Fasting. He is just the best! He was so accepting of these commandments. He just keeps talking about how excited he is for his baptism on the 21st, and he will have his Baptismal Interview on Saturday! It's getting so real! 

Sunday was so cool. We had 5 investigators at church! Sh, P, and W came, and they brought their friend, C, who is a former investigator! It was fast and testimony meeting, and halfway through the meeting, one of the members went up, and her friend who is from another faith went up as well!! She bore her testimony about how Christ has helped her, and it was the coolest thing!! The Spirit was so strong! We were able to meet with her yesterday, and we're going to start teaching her this weekend. I'm so grateful for the Spirit that exists in Fast and Testimony Meeting, and that it can touch anyone's heart, member or non member! 

Well folks, my brain is fried. Haha I wish I could write more, but it's just not happening today! Haha But I love you all so much! God is so good! Have a great week!

Sister Bethany Christensen
#blessed

Happy 2017 Friends! It was a pretty low-key New Year's Eve for us, but what an exciting week it was!

Exchanges on Wednesday were a blast! I was with the other Sister C and Sister M. Crazy story, Sister Ms' mom is also a C! So there were literally three Sister C's together! This was my first experience being in a tripan- or a set of three missionaries together. What a blast! There is rarely a quiet moment, but what a blast it was! We were able to spend a few hours downtown street contacting, and we had so much fun! We went around asking people what they were hoping to have happen in 2017. Besides the numerous responses regarding Donald Trump, the majority of people were excited to tell us about their plans! One interaction that particularly stood out to me was with a man named G. He looked like he was in his 30's, and he's homeless. You could see the weight of his sorrow in his eyes. We were able to give him a copy of the Book of Mormon and pray with him. As we closed the prayer, his eyes were wet with tears of gratitude. He really wants to change his life. Sadly he didn't show up to our appointment, but we'll keep trying to meet up with him. 

Ok, I thought I had told y'all about D, but I can't find it in any of my previous emails. He's one of our progressing investigators! We met him a few months ago outside the church building and invited him to come to church. He came that Sunday, but then we didn't hear from him for a while. We kept calling him to try and set up appointments, but nothing happened until the week before Christmas. He showed up to a lesson that Tuesday, and he's been going strong ever since! We meet with him every Tuesday and Thursday, and he has a baptismal date of January 21! He is incredible. He has such a desire to follow Christ. In our second lesson, he mentioned how the day that he met us, he was out with some friends, and he was really sick of living that lifestyle. He wanted to find a group of people who desired to follow God, and as he was walking home, he met us! Chills!!! When we asked him what he was most looking forward to in 2017, we could barely finish the sentence before he said, "my baptism!" He's truly incredible. It's been such a blessing teaching him. 

Yesterday was a day of finding for us. Our entire afternoon was open, and we had been challenged by our Zone Leaders to set very specific plans that we can be held accountable to with finding. So we laid out our plan, finding in downtown Edmonton with various methods of street contacting, bus contacting, tracting, and LRT contacting. We then told the Lord that we would do our best to find those He had been preparing. Within the first 5 minutes of street contacting, we were frozen! Like it was getting hard to move my face to talk it was so cold! So we decided to go underground on the pedways to warm up before coming back up to street contact. Before we knew it, we ran into a guy named D! He's actually a pretty good friend of mine! This is the 4th time I've run into him in the past few months! He's an activist for freedom of speech through his artwork! We've had many conversations together, but this was the first time he asked us to teach him a bit about our church. Although he isn't super interested in taking the lessons, we have established a solid relationship of respect with each other. I know for sure that he was one of the reasons I needed to be in this area.


After street contacting, we took the bus to head to an area we planned to tract. Of course, our faces were freezing off, so we stood in the lobby of an apartment building to warm up for a moment. This Indian man and his wife come through the front door and ask us if we were waiting for someone. When we told them that we were just warming up, they immediately invited us in to give us some coffee or tea! We settled with water and some coke. Haha but what a kind hearted man! We chatted for over 20 minutes on being a good person in the world. Family is really important to him, and we were able to give him a pamphlet on Families and Temples. He works with a member of the church, and he couldn't say enough good things about her! Through many attempts of convincing him, he wouldn't give us his phone number, but he did agree to take ours. I have no doubt that Heavenly Father had specifically prepared this man for us! We could just feel it as we talked with him. I truly have a testimony of effective planning and prayer! 

I seriously can't believe that it is 2017! What an incredible year 2016 was. I loved that all 365 days were spent wearing this name tag. I've met some of the most incredible people over the last year! I'm grateful for every single day, and I'm so grateful that I still have more! My goal for 2017 is to continue to be a dedicated servant of the Lord, with or without the name tag. This experience is meant to change my life, both externally and internally. I will do my best to continue to do the Lord's will, while meeting some pretty incredible along the way.

I hope each of you know how grateful I am for you! You helped make 2016 the best year yet for me! Have a great week!

Sister Bethany Christensen
#blessed

HELLO ALL!

First of all, I hope you had a fantastic Christmas! It was so so so great to Skype you, family! I can't believe how quickly Christmas has come and gone. It's still July in my brain! Except for the whole freezing arctic winter weather. Haha But it was a great Christmas! It's been an insanely busy week for us! We've been running here, there, and everywhere! 

I got to go on exchanges with Sister W this week! She's only been about for about 2 weeks and talk about Greenie Fire! She is so excited to be a missionary. We really focused on street contacting and bold conversations. She taught me so much!  She just loves being a missionary so much! We had so really cool conversations with a lot of people. One that stood out to both of us was with a guy from Mexico. We were talking about the Book of Mormon with him, and then he asked me a very unique question, "why is Jesus Christ so important?" I was slightly taken aback. I hadn't really ever thought about that question before, He's always just been so important in my mind. After I gave it some thought, the conclusion I came to was He is the whole reason why we are here. If we didn't have the hope that His Atonement brings, there would be zero purpose to our lives. There would be no hope, there would be no joy. We would just exist. It sparked a really great conversation, and although he didn't agree to meet, we both felt that we had truly testified of the purpose of our message, to bring others closer to Christ.

Thursday morning was such an crazy experience! We had a lesson with a Recent Convert, P, and her friend, K. P's boyfriend, J, was there, and we all read the introduction of the Book of Mormon together. After reading the first paragraph, we asked J what is was saying. Without hesitation, he said, "this is the word of God!" We about fell out of chairs! He just knew it so quickly! It was amazing! The more we read in the intro, the more he loved it! We asked him at the end of the lesson, we asked him if he came to know that this was the true church if we would be baptized, and he said yes! Another almost fall out of your chair moment! He's agreed to meet with the Elders that cover his area, and we're so excited for him! 

We had quite a humbling experience on Christmas Day. We had planned to visit a less active woman from the Connor's Hill ward that we had been working with. We had the elders give her a blessing last week, and we had discussed in that visit that the Elders would be taking it from here. We felt like we had tried all we could to help her, and so we figured maybe a change would help her move forward. We had planned this Christmas visit to be our last and then the elders would take over. SO we came over, had our nice visit. Christmas is pretty hard for her because she's really struggling financially. At the end of our visit, we casually mentioned again that we've enjoyed our time with her and the elders will be in touch. She was so shocked!! It was like we had dropped a bomb on her. You could just see the hurt and emotion flood to her face. So we try to backtrack a bit, but there was no saving it. She was devastated and so upset. We left feeling like the biggest Scrooges in the world. We had dumped her on Christmas! We had to go back to our apartment to Skype our families, but after that, we knew we needed to go back. So we drove back and apologized for being so insensitive. We hadn't even considered how this would make her feel, and we hadn't really put much thought and prayer into this switch. We just assumed it would be the best thing for her. When we went back, she kept expressing how we don't realize the impact that we have on every person we come in contact with. We lift them in a way that's not tangible, it can't be measured or proven. That hit me pretty hard. I've been looking for tangible results my whole mission, and time and time again I feel that I fall short because you can't measure my success on a piece of paper. But she's right! More often than not, we will not see the fruits of our labors. Seeds take a long time to grow, and it takes continuous nurturing and care for that seed to grow. Some seeds grow faster than others, but it takes that consistency to help it flourish. I learned a very important lesson that day. I am truly humbled and penitent because of that experience. 

Some other things that happened on Christmas included a TON of caroling! I lost count of how many times we sang Hark! The Herald Angels Sing! haha but it was a blast. One house we stopped at was near some potential investigators that the Spanish elders had found. We saw that their lights were on so we went and knocked. As soon as this woman opened the door, her whole face lit up! She immediately let us in and started grabbing cookies for us! Haha she kept saying, "it's just like in the movies!" haha definitely a highlight of the night! 

Besides all of the calls and caroling and temporary Scrooge moments, the best part of Christmas was being able to attend Sacrament meeting. It just felt different, especially when the sacrament was being passed. It really hit me that this is what it's all about. This is why Christmas exists! Without his Atoning sacrifice and love, December 25 would be just another day. But because of Him, we get to celebrate the greatest gift that has ever been given. I am in complete awe of the joy and love that I feel from Him as I share His gospel with every person we meet. As you have read from this email, I am so so far from perfect. But I know that this work will be accomplished because it's His work, not mine. 

Thank you a thousand times again for your love and support! I wouldn't be where I am without it. And Happy 2017 to all of you!!!

Sister Bethany Christensen
#blessed

​Hello Everyone!


It has been a cold and dreary week in the Great White North! Like so cold! Have you ever had it be so cold that your eyebrows feel frozen? yep.... that's how cold it was! With the windchill, it got down to -40 one night! Haha This is the Canadian winter I've been warned about. But despite the cold, it was a great week!

Wednesday was complete chaos! Although we didn't get transferred, we had to go to the transfer meeting to get our car! We know have a car full-time!! So blessed!! We had 20 new missionaries coming into the mission and 20 leaving. So there were people everywhere! I got to see all of my companions! We gave a training in the New Leadership Meeting, and it made me realize just how much I love being a Sister Training Leader! I love what I do! There is so many little details that keep this work going, and I'm gaining a stronger appreciation for it everyday. Later that day, we had a bit of time to tracting in the freezing cold! We decided we would knock on 10 doors and then get back in the car. A classic 4th Floor, Last Door moment! The last girl felt so bad for us being out in the cold that she let us in! We shared the Christmas video with her, and although she wasn't interested, the Spirit was there, and our feet got warm! haha

Thursday was my favorite day! MLC day! (Mission Leadership Council) I love it so so much! We spent the whole day talking about how to help the missionaries in our mission. I love that each of us have such a sincere desire to be better missionaries and to help others do the same. There is such power in counseling together to help our circle of influence. I have a testimony of councils! haha We have another MLC this week, so I'm excited to continue focusing on how we can build the mission. -End of missionary nerd moment. hahaha

Friday, we had our first meeting with our new ward mission leader in Forest Heights! Ok crazy thing- his name is Ri C. On Sunday, we also got a new ward mission leader in Strathcona, our married student ward, and his name is..... Ri C!! It's so crazy! They are both incredible men with a huge desire to work hard, and so we're really looking forward to working with them. All we need to do is figure out a nickname for one of them! 

Saturday was so good! We had a lesson with our new investigator, K K! He's from Korea, and he's married to a member. He's been taught the majority of the lessons by the Elders, but we found out he is a married student, so they passed him over to us. He has the best fellowshippers we could ever ask for! They set up the appointment, they invite him to other things, they translate for us because we don't speak Korean, and he speaks very little English. Haha We talked about the Book of Mormon and committed him and his wife to read it together. It's a bit of a challenge with the language barrier, but we're excited about him! 

Sadly, I've been battling a nasty chest cold for the last 5 days, and it has been such a pain! But despite the sickness, we were still able to get out and work every single day. I know that it wasn't my own strength that got me out each day, it was Grace! I literally couldn't have done it on my own! Being sick is no fun, and it is so hard to keep up the motivation. But I know that this isn't about me. And time goes so so fast! The weeks keep moving faster and faster, and I know that each moment is so precious. The last thing I want is to spend all that time lying in a bed sick! There are too many people to talk to and teach! Haha so I truly have a testimony of Grace, the enabling power of the Atonement. It can be for spiritual, emotional, and physical things in our life. And we don't always have to be worthy of it! It's just there, waiting for us to use it. I'm grateful for my Savior, that He has given this gift to me, unconditionally, and it will continue to be there. 

It is my hope that each of us can find a way during this Christmas season so give something back to our Savior. He's given us more than we can ever pay back, but whatever little thing we can do will have value in his eyes. 

I love you all so so much! Keep enjoying this Christmas season!

Sister Bethany Christensen
#blessed

Hello Everybody!


I hope your Thanksgiving was wonderful! We had such a blast with our district. It turned out to be a full blown Thanksgiving meal! We talked about gratitude in our meeting, and as we went around talking about what we are grateful for, we realized we are all grateful for the same things. And it was all centered around the gospel. I am truly so so grateful to be a missionary at this special time of year.

We have had a blast sharing the new Light the World video with people. It brings the Spirit every single time I watch it. On Saturday, we went to Churchill Square to go contacting, and surprisingly, almost no one was there! But there was one man who had his art work on display. I had met him once before, so I decided to go say hi. There was a protesting group next to him in a prayer circle. It turns out that he was there to paint them! He is what he describes as a activist artist, and he promotes equality for all people, regardless of if he agrees or not. We showed the Light the World video to him, and he loved it! It was exactly the message he wanted to portray. All of us can serve one another, regardless of our views or opinions. I think that is what I love most about this initiative is that it literally applies to everyone. Whether or not we believe in Christ, I would like to think that everyone has a desire to be a decent human being. And finding ways to serve people around us enlarges our souls! We feel so much joy as we help those around us! Ah, I just love this initiative so much! I know it's going to bring miracles all over the world. 

This weekend was Stake Conference, and the entire conference was centered on missionary work and the temple. I was just blown away at the enthusiasm and drive of our leaders to share the gospel. One specific talk that stood out to me was from President L, who is actually from Cherry Grove. He was the first talk of the Sunday session, and he expressed so much gratitude for the missionaries who knocked on his mother's door in England just before he was born. The emotion he showed as he expressed his gratitude was just inspiring! He then addressed all of the missionaries in the congregation and said, "thank you for what you do. You don't realize the effect you are having on those around you." I needed to hear that so badly! I've struggled the past few weeks with feeling like I'm not making a difference. I know that I've been helping people, but I haven't been able to see someone I've taught enter the waters of baptism, and I really want to experience that. But him saying that made me realize that I'm not here just to see someone in a baptismal font, I'm here to help families be together forever, no matter how long it takes. It's not about me and what I want to experience here, it's about what they choose and how I can help them achieve true joy. 

Well everyone, I have been so great at writing nice, long emails every single week. But it's just not happening this week. Hahha I'm sorry! I had to finish my school application! But just know that I have a testimony of this gospel! And I have a deep love for my Savior. Everything I have and hold dear is because of Him.

Have a great week, and I'll email you on Monday because WE'RE GOING TO JASPER!! 

Love you all so much!

Sister Bethany Christensen
#blessed