Week 4.

Hello lovely people who happen to be reading this post!!! I love y'all and I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Life is honestly too good to be true. Prattville is incredible and the work is moving forward! I'm realizing this work is so much bigger than me, and I am very humbled to be apart of it. By internalizing my purpose and focusing on OTHER peoples eternal salvation, I am able to stay motivated and enthused about life!!!

This week I have tried to put my HEART and MIND into my work here and everything has changed! I can truly say from the inside out that I am so very happy!!!! Today we had a zone party where we ate pizza, played knockout, ultimate Frisbee, football, and waxed our cars!!!!!!!! Best thing ever!!! I was just going crazy because I WAS SO HAPPY! I was jumping around and laughing and just being so pumped on life. Thus the secret is out-everyone has now been exposed to the real ella! hahhaha Everyone was so confused it was hilarious. Like "how in the world do you have so much energy?!?? who is training you?!!!!!!!" I love when I get in those moods! It is just because the church is so true and Jesus makes me so happy. That is the bottom line! Read the scriptures, pray, serve others, and you will be happy!

I love all the people here and all the lessons we teach! I truly know I am a representative of Jesus Christ. There is no greater calling. He is the MAN!!!!!!!! Seriously though. He is the reason for everything and He is my best friend. One thing special and really amazing we get to do here in Alabama is leave the Savior's peace and blessing on peoples homes. So even though I am a girl, I have been set apart and for this 18 months can have this authority!!! We say "Heavenly Father, In virtue of our calling as missionaries and representatives of Jesus Christ, we ask for the Saviors peace and blessing on this the [      ] home..." Every time someone lets us in the door and lets us do this I feel the spirit. Even though people are from different faiths, the peace you feel is undeniable. I know God loves all of His children more than we will ever know. He is allowing me to love people with my whole heart that I just meet by knocking on their door! I am so motivated to work because I know there are prepared people out there! We just have to work our hardest so we can find them! Imagine-there are 40,000 people here in Prattville-if we talked to all of them we would have 100's of baptisms!!!! So incredible! I can assure you the "field is white already to harvest", and I am here to do what the Lord wants me to do!

I feel the spirit everyday and know God is watching out for all y'all wherever you may be. The church is true. Joseph Smith saw Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father in the sacred grove. He restored the fullness of the gospel on the earth. We have the priesthood power on the earth today. We have a prophet called of God to guide us in these latter days. I LOVE the English language more than I can tell you because I learn so much from the scriptures everyday. I just want to read them all day long! hahha but not really, because it is my responsibility to share this glorious news with everyone else!

whooo hooooooooooooo! 

with all my love,

Sister Ella Rae Madsen

 Dale and all of her Perfume! She said there are over 1,000!

 Ella said that there are signs like these everywhere!

 Sister Barczak (she makes every missionary a keychain of Prattville)

 Chocolate Palooza!

 Ella's companions are the ones in the front.

   Ella's investigator Glenda!

Made it to Ellabama! - Week 3

I am in Prattville, Alabama!!! What a dream! I am in a tripanionship so I have 2 lovely trainers-Sister Jensen from Nashville (who has been waiting for her Brazil visa for 6 months!) and Sister Haws from Washington state. We all get along great and I am so humbled and grateful for them!!

Note, new address for sending letters: (Don't use the old address!)

Sister Ella Rae Madsen 100 McQueen Smith Rd South Apt. A6 Prattville, AL 36066

A few funny things:

1. EVERYONE thinks I have an accent.

2. I've been fed: Kraft's mac n cheese, Papa John's pizza, hot dogs, chicken and dumplings, deer, biscuits, kool aid, candy, and chips.

3. Thus all I eat at the apartment is apples, raw cauliflower, and plain greek yogurt.

4. No one has teeth. The other day we were teaching this old couple on their porch and I was getting to know the lady. Talking about how I was from California and she muttered something. I said "Mud? Bird? Married?" Then her husband spat out "murdered!". Her daughter was murdered in California. "Oh..." Yikes!!! I was just all bubbly trying to understand what the poor lady was saying! I felt so bad.

The first week in the field has been crazy.I feel so exhausted at the end of each day it's insane. This is hard hard work, but it really is worth it. When I have felt the lowest, God has given me a miracle to bring it all back up! All the people here are GOOD people. Everyone believes in God and I love that. I LOVE personal study and companion study in the morning because the scriptures teach us so much! They are for us and we need to read them! Your questions can be answered and you can receive personal revelation! God teaches me through the scriptures everyday and it truly gives me the strength to keep going!

My mission president and his wife are the best. So loving and friendly and easy going. I am SO grateful. His favorite thing to say is "TURN OUTWARD". Instead of having all the arrows facing toward you, grab them and turn them around. If you ever think about yourself, stop. We focus on LOVE and SERVICE here and that is what brings success. When we focus our efforts on other people we really do find happiness. So when we go door to door we just ask for service opportunities! We painted a ladies wall, are raking this other ladies yard, clean, etc. The other day I held this ladies leg and helped her do exercises to recover from a hip replacement. But she only had on underwear! Love it!  

I am not very good at turning outward but my goal for this week is to dedicate not just my strength, time and abilities to the Lord, but to give him my HEART and MIND. Whenever I start to think of myself or long to be somewhere else, I am going to say a prayer for someone else! I am taking President Hinckley's dads advice to "forget myself and get to work!". I love that! I get to decide how this next 18 months will go, so I must find the positive in every situation!

The members here are incredible!!!! We get someone to go out with us everyday! It helps so much because the investigators have someone to relate to, can make a new friend, and feel more comfortable when a member is with us! Just like I had to recruit people to donate blood for Red Cross Blood Drives, we get to help members understand why it is so important they come teach with us! And it is wonderful!

God knows us each perfectly. He is in every tiny detail of this work. It blows my mind. Everything I've done in life has prepared me for this experience. I am beginning to realize how large and perfect Heavenly Father's plan really is. It is beautiful! I love it here and am learning so much! I am grateful it is hard. I am grateful I am new and don't know anything. I am reaching outside of my comfort zone and growing.

Whoooo hooooo!!!! Have a lovely, cheerful, positive week my friends!!

With all my love,

Sister Ella Rae Madsen

Ella and Elder Patch at the MTC!

Ella's MTC companion Sister Butterfield. 

Sister Butterfield :)

Future Home.

Ella's good friend Lyman going to the Ukraine.

Another friend at the MTC, Sister Herndon going to Ohio.

Prancing the MTC. 

Ella's MTC district.

Sister Neufville in Alabama

Twins!

MTC

MTC - Week 2!

First of all, I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY!!!!

I was clearly struggling in my last email, but what a blessing that is! I am learning so much. I've grown and changed more than I could've ever imagined in 10 days. And I love it all! I am SO happy!!


Remember the story about Christ holding us in the fire so he can refine us that I used in my farewell? I'm in that fire because Christ is helping me become the disciple He needs me to be. 

What I've learned this week: MISSIONS ARE HARD, but MIRACLES ARE REAL.

One thing that has been on my mind since getting here has been finding the balance between being "Ella" and a "serious missionary". As I was praying for what question to bring to conference, the same thought came into my mind on 2 occasions. "Who do you want to be?"

WOW. From the minute conference started until the last word spoken, I received countless answers. Faith and humility. I need to put my trust in God while being like a child-humble, meek, obedient, and submissive. Every talk was mind blowing and the personal revelation was flowing! I am so beyond grateful!!! I could write so much about every talk. So if you didn't listen to all 4 sessions, I would encourage you to look up the talks. They will give you the advice, comfort, and wisdom you need in this crazy world.

Tuesday night devotional: Emeritus General Authority John M. Madsen spoke on the Atonement and having "dignity". Loved it. I was just SO happy coming home-you know the Ella that is just on one! Well I was. And so I skipped all the way home just laughing and having the time of my life. Then we got back to west campus after the 45 minute walk through Provo (a dream come true!) and had a meeting with our branch presidency. We discussed what has been hardest for us and I again thought of my internal struggle-how to conduct myself. I decided to refrain from talking and counsel with the Lord first. So when I got home I opened a letter I had gotten from Matt Balkman. Luckily I had taken the advice of one of our teachers to wait and read letters at night so we aren't distracted. I sat down on our couch and opened the letter. Pulled out a card with a picture of zebras on it that said "CONFORMITY. When people have the ability to choose for themselves, they copy each other." I continued to read and Matt told me to just be me. I, Ella Rae, was called by God. I have been given my talents and personality and uniqueness for a reason and I need to use it. Yes I will be obedient, but I need to be myself. That was a MIRACLE. Thank you Matt for listening to your inspired prompting to send me that thoughtful card and gift. It was a true answer to prayer.

I am so grateful for the gospel and everything I am learning here. The Book of Mormon is true. If you haven't sincerely read it in a long time or ever at all, I invite you to do so. The promise made in Moroni 10:3-5 is real. I have experimented on the words and have received a great witness of the truth and power of this book. Pray and read with sincerity and desire. I can promise you if you take the leap of faith to experiment on the words, you will not fall.  

With All My Love,

Sister Ella Rae Madsen

MTC - Week 1

BIG SHOUTOUT TO SANDY BERTHA!!!!!!!! sent me a package with lots of goodies i got to share and the lovliest letter and it was on the 1st day! family, dont feel bad for one minute. but i just want to express my sincere gratitude for it sister bertha!!! made me smile so big and realize that god is working through his precious children! you are incredible and i am so thankful for your example! love you! :)

So life here is wonderful. I can't complain. I am already learning and growing so much. I've already had ups and downs and it has helped my realize that the Lord is already changing me. I am working on being humble because I need to more fully come unto Christ and commit 100% to the missionary lifestyle. I need to let go of Ella and be Sister Madsen, a missionary that is close to God and really doesn't care about her own selfish desires. Coming into the MTC my mind wasn't fully prepared to be a missionary. It is all an adjustment and I am grateful this is the "training" center because I am making mistakes and learning so much! But through 2 main experiences I've come to realize I am stubborn and need to let go of myself!!!! 

food. everyone thinks im super healthy bc i never eat the meat and i always just ask for vegetables. and then i think people think im starving myself bc i really just dont need very much food. i eat 3 meals a day! that is enough people! they dont have to be HUGE!

companion-a dream. more than a blessing sister butterfield. cute, light brown hair, from Sandy utah, dancer. we clicked right off the bat and just love each other. wow does god have his hand in this work! we laugh all day long and both love water, working out, and basically everything the same. i cant think of all the details but there are so many! whooo hooo!!! she is crazy silly just like me but we keep each other in line. i dont think anyone will ever be as psycho as me so people think its strange when i run around and skip and twirl but hey! im just a happy person!!! thats what this gospel is all about!

All of our teachers are INCREDIBLE! the mtc is different than anyone would EVER expect. i cant explain it. kate made me crack up so many times in her email! i havnt had time to read all my dear elders yet because i LITERALLY have NO time. my comp and i are currently on main campus in a computer room that we found bc we are all watching conference here. whooo hoo!! this is our p-day. Ha. but they teach you how to teach. everything here is ROLE PLAY. everything. fake investigators and situations up the whoooo hozie!!! its weird at first because you have to teach by the spirit and say real prayers, even though the lessons are fake. but its really good. one of our teachers said "this is God's mtc." true. if the church is true and we can receive revelation and he has one place to train his servants....then what goes on here is something special. yes its insane like hargie said. hard because the lord doesnt wait one second to break you down so you will turn to him and build yourself back up. and because the days are LONG. every day really does feel like a week. when i go to bed i am very grateful. but its beautiful to see how people are already changing so much. like this one boy in my district was beyond awkward, and still is, but i did a role play with him and he had confidence and even shed a tear with his simple testimony! so tender.

and this morning was such a blessing! they LET US walk from west campus (where i am at wyview/raintree) all the way to the main MTC for conference!!!!! it TOOK 30 MINUTES! i love nature and being outside and being on my old stomping grounds right at byu! LOVED IT! and we get to come here tomorrow! whooo hooo!!

sorry this is 50000000000000 barges long to read! like mena said, i wont be offended for ONE SECOND if you dont read this. im officially one of those crazy missionaries who writes WAY too much.

love y'all. the church is true. first session of conference- KILLED IT! loved every word!! this is the place! god knows us all SO individually and perfectly and wants nothing more than for us to progress and come unto Christ. this is our purpose as missionaries. to help people COME UNTO CHRIST! thats beautiful! we are so blessed! i love to smile and laugh and we do it all day here. count your blessings my friends!!

xoxox

sister ella rae madsen