Another P-day!

Sister Kerr and I in our apartment.

Beautiful fall leaves in Oregon.

Hi Everyone! Here we are again, another P-day! I am so grateful for P-days. They are so necessary and needed. It feels like it has been at least 4 months since I last wrote. haha So I am not as organized this week with what to write, but I will do my best to share as much as possible about what has happened.
Wednesday was my first real day in the mission field. I'll start out with my first experience tracting. It was THE scariest moment of my life. haha Tracting is SO terrifying for me!!! We went to the first door and the guy took the Book of Mormon and said we could come back Saturday! Unfortunately, he didn't answer on Saturday. But we will try again. On that first tracting experience we also ran into an inactive member who we are going to go see today and gave out one other Book of Mormon. After we stopped tracting that day I was seriously craving to keep tracting more. Which is so weird. I think I just really wanted to keep going so that I could get used to it. But, I don't feel like that after tracting anymore. haha
On Saturday we went tracting and we were having no success at all. One lady opened her door and immediately yelled, "I'm not interested, I practice witchcraft!" Ummm... We also had a guy who had been given anti literature and was extremely not welcoming.
As we were walking back to the car we stopped and talked to a man and woman who were unloading flowers out of the back of their car to see if they needed help. The man gave Sister Kerr and I each a bouquet of flowers and said that they sold flowers at the farmers market and didn't sell a lot today and that maybe those would brighten our day a little. I needed it! We then gave them a Book of Mormon and they weren't interested at all in us after that but we left them with it anyway. It was so nice of him to give us flowers though. We gave one to Sister Levinseller, who came with us to an appointment later that day, and another bouquet to Sister Kavenaugh, who fed us dinner that night.
Whenever we go tracting I have to take it one door at a time or else I feel as if I might collapse. haha it is so hard for me. I sing a hymn in my head and picture angels walking beside me and focus on how these peoples lives could change with this knock on the door. Help the missionaries in your area!!!! Tracting is wonderful and could potentially be successful, but it is so much better to receive referrals. ALWAYS be looking for people you can refer to the missionaries. That will bring the most success.
We got a referral the day after we got here from Mormon.org. It was from a lady in Washington referring her friend in our ward. The lady said only the sister missionaries could come by, so what a blessing it is that we got here the day before! Her name is Heidi and she has had a hard life, and called her member friend in Washington saying that she was missing something important in her life. So her friend referred her to us. Heidi said that she has investigated almost every church there is and is still missing something and she decided maybe it was time to try our church. We went and saw her and she told us how lately she has felt "spiritually hungry". She uses phrases like that a lot that are so familiar to us, but she always says, "I know this sounds so so weird..." and then she will describe how she is "spiritually hungry" or how she felt her prayer was answered or how she recognizes a spirit in us, etc... The Lord has been preparing her. We just visited with her that first day and then we went back on Saturday to teach her the Restoration. When we talked about how the gospel blesses families she cried so much. The Spirit was so strong. She has had a lot of hard experiences with men, but she loves her kids so much and wants to help them be happy so much. At the end of the lesson I asked her, "As you come to know for yourself these things are true, will you be baptized by someone holding the authority from God?" and she VERY enthusiastically said, "Yeah! Heck Yeah!!!" haha It was one of the best moments of my life. haha Tonight we are going to try to set a specific date for her baptism, so hopefully it goes just as well.
Heidi and her 11 year old son came to church with us yesterday and they both loved it a lot. It was the primary program in our ward which was so cute and good for her too because she wants a good religion for her two little baby granddaughters. Also, because it was the kids sharing everything, the doctrines taught were in such simple terms that it was just so good for her. After Sacrament Meeting I introduced her to Brother Wheeler. He and his wife just got baptized a year ago and went to the temple to be sealed this past Saturday. He asked her about what she was thinking as she is investigating and she said, "This is it. It just feels so good." Sunday school was amazing as well. The brother teaching taught about the Plan of Salvation and it was an amazing lesson! Heidi had her Book of Mormon out on her lap the whole time and even felt comfortable enough to ask questions. It was a perfect preview for our lesson with her tonight. Relief Society was on forgiveness which Heidi has been telling us that is something she and her daughter are struggling with so that was good for her as well. It was all just a really good Sunday for her. After it was done she said, "Church isn't long enough! There is still so much to talk about!" haha It was really cute. I really pray that she will continue to pay careful attention to her feelings. I know that this gospel will bless her and her children's lives so much. She is so special and I feel so blessed to know her! We are going to see if Noah, her 11 year old son who went to church yesterday, wants to take the lessons. And we are also going to ask her 17 year old daughter and her two baby girls to sit in with us too.
We also taught a girl named Claudia who has been investigating. She already has a baptismal date for a month from now. She has to wait because she doesn't turn 18 for another month and her dad doesn't want her to be baptized. She is so amazing! We already love her so much too, and have another lesson with her tomorrow.
We have been trying to go see a lot of inactives, but can't get in many houses. We have already had a lot of appointments set up and then cancelled or not there when we show up. That happens so much. I am so grateful for the members help. Please help the missionaries. Have your friends come to your house and do lessons there with them. It is such a huge help and way more successful than leaving everything to the full-time missionaries.
We have been eating dinner at members houses every night. I like our ward so much! The people are so kind. It was fun to go to church yesterday so we could meet everyone. Sister Kerr and I passed out programs so we could meet everyone and it is so cute to see how excited everyone is that sister missionaries are in the ward now too.
This week I have prayed a lot, and this morning I realized that every day I have received answers to my prayers in a similar way to Enos, when he said, "...and the words which I had often heard my father speak concerning eternal life, and the joy of the saints, sunk deep into my heart..." This has very literally happened to me this past week. Many of my prayers regarding questions that have been troubling me have been answered in the form of hearing what Mommy and Daddy have taught me in the past. I am SO grateful for loving parents who have raised me in the gospel. It is their words who come to my mind when I am struggling with something. "Families are ordained of God, they are the most important social unit in time and in eternity... The home is the best place to teach, learn, and apply principles of the gospel of Jesus Christ." I am so grateful I was raised in a home that was centered on these principles, and by loving parents who taught me truth and whose words come to my mind as I strive to help others and strengthen my own testimony.
I miss you all and love you. I feel so blessed to have all of you. THANK YOU for so many emails!!!  It feels like months pass between each P-day, so write write write please.
I know my Savior lives. I am so grateful for His guidance. I am so thankful for the angels I feel around me bearing me up and giving me courage and strength. I am so extremely grateful for the Book of Mormon. The scriptures can provide us with so much strength as we follow its teachings. I am so grateful for the knowledge I have of the power of prayer and of the power of the atonement. What a special thing to know that we don't have to carry the load of our burdens. Mosiah 24:13-15.
I love you all and miss you. You are all a part of me wherever I go. :)

Aloha from Aloha!

Aloha from Aloha! -(Sister Kerr came up with that haha)
Because we didn't get P-day yesterday President Morby is letting us have it today!!! But normally it will be on Mondays.
I am here in Oregon! I have been assigned to a town called Aloha.  Sister Kerr is my trainer and we have one ward that we are over.  Sister Kerr and I live in an apartment. In this ward, Aloha 2nd ward, there are two sets of missionaries assigned to it.  Elder Allred and Elder Freshour are also in our ward, so we will work with them. There are 500 members in the ward and about 400 are inactive. So lots of work to be done!  But we also have a lot of investigators and we have a few lessons set up already for this week.  Tonight we are going to meet some of the former investigators in the area book and see what happens there.  I am so scared haha-I haven't taught real investigators yet.  But it is exciting.  
Last night we went to dinner at the members house who the Elders in our ward live with, the Reids.  They are such lovely people!  Sister Reid sent Sister Kerr and I home with a lot of food and necessities to get through the night.  It was so nice of her!  
Sister Kerr and I are living in a brand new apartment since this is the first time they are having two sets of missionaries in this ward.  We also have a brand new car!  After dinner last night we went to see our Bishop who coincidentally is Bishop Brown.  Sister Brown from SAT Mission who served in our ward-it's her dad. So random! She was there and I saw her and she said Sister Meyers lives nearby and is married so I will probably see her too! That was a fun surprise.
Sister Kerr is so sweet. She looks a lot like Meagan which is so fun! When we were getting ready for the day this morning she just reminded me so much of Meag and it was funny. She is really sweet. It is scary to be with the same person for 24 hours a day for 3 months, just because that is not an easy thing to do!  But we are having lots of fun so far and love the area and are really excited for the investigators the elders left us with.
Yesterday morning we got up at 2:30 because we had to be to the travel office at 3:30. We had said goodbye to the Elders in our district the night before because none of them would be there in the morning except for Elder Cashmore who is going to the New York Rochester Mission.  However, we didn't get to ride on the same bus as Elder Cashmore because we were going to separate places but he came and found all of us on the bus to give us pass-along cards and give us all one last handshake goodbye.  We took the Frontrunner (train) to the airport and our flight left at 8:30. It was a really short flight. When we landed all the missionaries were super excited and I was too actually, but in a much more quiet way. haha  It just felt so right to be in Oregon.  I am where the Lord wants me to be, and that overtook my heart as I looked out the window of the airplane.  Sister Magnusson and I are fast walkers so we were the first ones to get to President and Sister Morby, who were waiting for us.  They are so sweet, I love them already so much.
Oregon is BEAUTIFUL. I can tell why everyone is always saying that. It is SO green and just so breathtaking. The leaves are all different colors for fall and there are trees everywhere. It was cloudy and foggy yesterday but today it is sunny, but either way Oregon is beautiful. 
After meeting President and Sister Morby, we got our luggage and went to the temple and took pictures. The temple is SO GORGEOUS! It is one of the prettiest temples I have ever seen.  Like so so so pretty.  It is amazing. Then we went to a stake center next to the temple and did some orientation stuff and had lunch.  Then we went in the RS room and there were missionaries sitting in there and we all sat down and President Morby called our names one by one and who our companion was.  When I walked in to the room at first and sat down I looked over at the sisters and Sister Kerr was sitting there with a huge smile on her face and I just knew that she was going to be my companion.   When President called all of our names each companionship hugged each other and sat down together.  Sister Kerr gave me a big hug and I felt better just having her next to me. Companions really are a huge blessing.  But it is also one of the hardest things!!! haha  After all the companionships were called we went to the chapel and got our areas assigned and then got our apartment keys and phones and area book and everything.  Then we went to our apartment, dropped our stuff off, then went to dinner at the Reids.  It was such a long day.

Sunday was our very last day in the MTC. Relief Society was amazing.  The musical number was so beautiful and I closed my eyes and cried as a thought about my district and how much I would miss the MTC.  I thought of everything that had happened there.  At my interview with President McMullin he pointed to the light streaming through the window next to us and he said, "See that light? That's you.  That is how I am going to remember you."  My district had so much fun just being together all day on Sunday and enjoying our last day together. Before the fireside began that night all the missionaries sang "We'll bring the world his truth" and it was so powerful. That was family I would have to say bye to and probably might never see again. Then we went to the film together, "Becoming a Missionary" by Elder Bednar.  After the film my district went back to our classroom where we stood in a circle in the middle of   prayer together. We all knelt down and the Spirit was so strong in the room.  Afterwards Elder Cash said that there was a reason we were all on our missions at that time and entered the day we did and one of those reasons was so that we could all be in that district together.  My feelings exactly. Then we all gave a ton of good-bye handshakes.  My district made my MTC experience amazing.  But the Lord made my MTC experience life-changing.
I am so grateful to be here on a mission at this time.  I am supposed to be here right now.  I feel so beyond blessed to have had such a special time at the MTC.  I had countless spiritual experiences there that I could never repay Heavenly Father for letting me have.  The Lord lives.  He lives.  He has set a straight and narrow path for us to be happy, so that we don't have to be left lost and confused.  Straight and narrow is the way, and what a blessing that is.  What a blessing it is to have commandments from God that are the means of telling us exactly what we need to do to have joy.  I pray that I can use this time of my life that I have dedicated to the Lord in a manner that will please Him.  I pray that I can be the means of bringing some soul to repentance- to pure, peaceful joy.  I feel so blessed to have the gospel in my life. Life is so hard, but it is worth it.  As we follow the Lords will for us, He blesses us beyond measure.  I look forward to the day that I can forever live with Him and be surrounded by my family for eternity.  I miss you all so much.
Write me letters please!!! 

14924 SW Scholls Ferry Rd, Beaverton, Oregon 97007

I love you all. Thank you for your support and prayers.

My MTC Experience

Hi Everyone!!!
I am like so nervous right now for some reason because I have SO much to
write yall about and I feel weird emailing yall haha. But this is exciting!
I hope I can convey how amazing this week has been here in the MTC. This is
my first and last email in the MTC!! A week from right now I will be in
Oregon. Crazy...
This past week has felt like it has been WAY longer than a week. But it has
been so good. We go all day. We just go go go. My thoughts are going wild
right now. I just have so much to tell you about and don't know where to
start.
I know that this church is true. I have always known. And I would have
never denied that I knew before, but here at the MTC I have received
multiple confirmations that know I could never deny that this church is
true, that our Savior lives, and that this is His work. He is here. I have
felt His presence next to me. I can only compare how I have felt this past
week to how I feel in the temple. Except for it is a constant 24 hours a
day thing. The spirit is so strong here and there is a power that makes it
evident that the Lord is hastening His work. There have been moments when I
could hardly breathe and I close my eyes and feel as if I were to open the
Lord would be standing in front of me. I literally feel the blood pumping
through my veins and that power running through my veins and it is a
feeling that I wish I could describe but I just can't. I hope I don't lose
it ever.
It has become so evident that the Lord truly did send me here at
this time for a reason. I wasn't supposed to come a year ago, I wasn't
supposed to enter the MTC a week before I entered. I was supposed to come
right now. I feel that constantly. I am FINALLY exactly where I am supposed
to be and I feel that running through my entire being. I can't describe it
exactly, except for I have felt the Lord, and I know He lives.
The MTC is
an incredible place. I feel as if I am in heaven. It is hard work, it is
constant effort, but it is heaven. I have never felt more alive. There are
so many ups and downs. I have never felt more inadequate in my life. Every
moment here at the MTC makes me realize more and more how gloriously
important this work is, and how extremely inadequate I am for this work.
But with that, I realize more and more how much I rely and need the Lord
and His guidance. There have been countless moments when I have felt the
spirit running through me and I couldn't deny that the thoughts coming to
my mind were from the Lord. I love my Savior. He is here. He loves each one
of us. I have never experienced this more deeply than I have here.
I will just start from the beginning. When we were driving up to the MTC I
thought I was going to hyperventilate. My chest was getting heavy and I
could hardly breath and I thought I was going to jump out of the car and
just run away. It was really the worst feeling. But as soon as I got out
and got my suitcases and started walking to the building everything the
whole rest of the day was just go go go. I didn't have time to think about
my family, or what I got myself into. It was just go go go and extremely
overwhelming. I don't really have much to say about the first day except
for that it was overwhelming. I knew that the only way I could be happy on
this MTC journey was if I loved my companion. I have prayed and prayed and
I constantly pray and pray to love her and understand her and we get along
great. I love having someone to rely on when my mind goes blank during a
lesson or I don't know where to go. :) Her name is Sister Magnusson. In my
district is also Sister Gill and Sister Quizon, Elder Cash and Elder
Cashmore, Elder Toilalo and Elder Richards. They are so awesome! But we
didn't become super close until the next day. We got up the next morning
and went to personal study time in our classroom and it was dead silent.
None of us talked to each other at all. haha Then we went to breakfast and
the had additional study time where I mentioned that maybe we could all
study together for that! haha after that we have eaten all our meals
together in the cafeteria and have become inseperable basically. I LOVE my
district. One of the reasons the Lord sent me on my mission right now is so
that I could have this district here at the MTC.
After study time in the morning we went to get shots then went to People
and my Purpose workshop. By then I already felt like it should be 8 at
night, but it was only 10:30 in the morning. I never knew you could do so
much in one day!!! haha During this meeting we talked about how to develop
love for your investigators and all of Gods children. At this meeting I
realized how completely happy I am. There is an ability to feel the spirit
so constantly here and it is amazing. Then we went back to our classroom
where Brother Flinders came to talk to us about MTC Orientation. We talked
about our purpose and what we want to get out of our time here. He had us
just pray and think about this. This was my first experience where when I
closed my eyes I could literally feel the Lord and angels next to me. The
Lord is here preparing His missionaries for His work.
In Brother Valentine, one of my teachers, class we talked about which
investigator we were teaching. Sis M and I are teaching Greg. Before I talk
about him I just want to describe this. Greg isn't a real investigator. Brother Alder is our teacher and he is playing the role of Greg. Greg was actually one of Bro Alders investigators on his mission. Brother Alders love for Greg is so evident. And when he plays Greg, he becomes Greg. Greg has felt like a real investigator for us and my love for him is so strong. We committed him to baptism yesterday :) but I'll get there. Greg claimed to be an atheist whose best friend was a mormon and referred his name to the missionaries. Our first lesson I
recited Joseph Smiths vision in his own words. That was the first time
reciting it for an investigator and the spirit in the room was undeniable.
I was crying and could hardly finish. As I was looking at Greg speaking
Joseph Smiths words I could see out of the corner of my eye a picture of
the first vision on the wall behind him and next to that the sun streaming
through the window and it was an incredible experience. Our third lesson
with Greg on Monday was so awful. That was my lowest point at the MTC. I
felt like the worst missionary ever after that. haha But Elder Cash and
Elder Cashmore talked with Sis M and I after about what went wrong and why
and helped us come up with a plan after. Then they sat in on our next
lesson with us just to watch. But that lesson went so so so well. Then
yesterday was our fifth lesson and he committed to baptism in a month. So
now we get to work with him to prepare for that! After each lesson with
Greg Brother Alder turns back into himself and gives us advice. After our
first lesson with him he said, "Thank you for comng to the MTC prepared." I
am so grateful for Brother Alder and for the character he played, Greg. I
love them so much and am so grateful for them. We were so shocked and
excited when he said yes to prepare for baptism yesterday!!!! Brother Alder
wouldn't have done that if we hadn't hit the mark on what Greg needed.
Afterwards we walked into the hall so happy and Elder Cash and Elder
Cashmore were there and I almost highfived Elder Cashmore becuase I was so
excited, but then we paused and all of us did good work handshakes instead.
haha They are so great. In all of our pictures the elders and sisters leave
so much space in between each other that it looks like we aren't even
supposed to be in each others picture haha I love them so much. Exact
obedience is important. :)
Thursday night I had an interview with my branch pres, President McMullin.
He said, "It is so amazing to see a district so close after just a day." I
was seriously like, "it's only been a day????" haha I love my district. I
am scared to go to the mission field and not have their support around me
all the time. But I will have the Lord.
On Sunday I saw Mommy and Daddy! haha I kept my cool when I saw Daddy :)
haha Sunday was so great. My interview with President was amazing. I cried
as I spoke to him about my love for the MTC and my love for the Lord and
how I didn't want to enter back into the world and lose this feeling. He
helped me so much and promised I would like the mission field even more. I
am so grateful for him. He also gave an incredible talk in church that I
felt was just for me. Sunday Elder Cash and Elder Cashmore were called as
the zone leaders and Sis M and I were called as the training sister
leaders. It was so fun last night to welcome the new missionaries, and we
had such a spiritual time with them. It was amazing.
Sunday night was a great fireside but we lost our district right before and
so Sis M and I sat alone. It was the first time I started getting homesick.
Then for the film that night we found the elders saving seats for us and I
wasn't homesick anymore. haha I don't know what I am going to do without my
MTC family. The film we watched was The Character of Christ by Elder
Bednar. GO WATCH IT. It was one of the most incredible moments of my life
and so life changing. Afterwards we could all hardly move from how
overwhelmed we were with the spirit. It was amazing. One of the things
Elder Bednar says in it is "If you think you can't do it, you're right. You
can't. But through the atonement you can have the strength to do all
things... but its not about you... if you lose yourself in service, you'll
find yourself, but you won't be looking for it."
The Elders are so funny but cute Sister Quizon described them last night
perfectly when she said, "they are silly but spiritually mature." We have
the ability to have fun and laugh but turn it off immediately and be
focused. Except for yesterday. Yesterday Elder Cash was pretending to be
Greg so we could teach him and try to figure out what Greg needed before
going in and teaching him, but Sis M and Elder Cash and I kept getting
attacked by the giggles. So then Edler Cashmore was like let me be Greg.
Then he got attacked by the giggles. We are all tired I think. But having
the best time ever.
My first few nights here I couldn't sleep at all. Partly because it was a
new place, but mostly becuase I didn't want to go to sleep and lose the
feeling I had. The feeling of the spirit running through me. I know that
sounds silly but I just wanted to lay there and feel. I love it here. The
spirit is everywhere. This is such powerful work.
On Sunday we had a training meeting for being the sis training leaders so
we didn't get to go to chior practice. But luckily they still let us go
Tuesday and we got to be in the devotional choir and sing for Elder Oaks. ELDER
OAKS CAME!!!! I was so excited. We were all singing hymns and all of the
sudden everyone stands and in walks Elder Oaks while we were singing. It
was so powerful. I loved his talk and as we sang Praise to the Man in the
choir and I looked at him on the stand I thought I might float out of my
chair. He is a servant of God, we have been called to help him move forward
the Lords work, and this is the Lords work. The Lord lives!! And it is He
who guides this church! One of my favorite things that Elder Oaks said was,
"the greatest priviledge of missionary work is to do for God's children
something similar to what our Savior did for us- in that its something
they cannot do for themselves." This is a glorious work. This is the most
important work. This is the Lords work.
That's all I can think right now. I know more than ever that this church is
true, that our Savior lives, and that He knows and loves each of us and has
the ability to speak to us through the Holy Ghost. This has been the most
amazing and powerful week of my life. I think I am having the experience
here that the MTC was made for :)
I love you all. Seek for the truth in your life. Seek for the spirit. Seek
for knowledge. Seek for God.
Love, Sister Dittmar

My desk.

The first picture taken of my district. It shows Elder Cash and Elder Cashmore's relationship perfectly. haha.

My lovely companion, Sister Magnusson.

We were always careful to leave a big space in between the sisters and elders, and we always joked how it looked like we were two separate groups who were accidentally in each others picture.

My wonderful sisters.

The MTC

Walking to do some laundry.

Yay!

President and Sister McMullin. We love them and are so grateful for them.

Called to Serve

"Dear Sister Dittmar:
You are hereby called to serve as a missionary of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. You are assigned to labor in the Oregon Portland Mission." :)

Behold, I am a disciple of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. I have been called of Him to declare His word among His people, that they might have everlasting life. ~3 Nephi 5:13