You will find everything you need if you just believe!

 Here is Sister Leavitt and her Companion catching a train to Moscow.......hee...hee

 Sister Leavitt finally found a boyfriend...he looks "Fat and Happy"

Not sure what this picture is other than a train station in Moscow.

Busy and cheerful….that’s our Courtney!  She let me know that next week she will be on a Visa trip and so we won’t get an email until Tuesday or Wednesday.  She also said she will only have 1-visa trip left after next week….that is so crazy!   Hope you enjoyed her pictures she took while in Moscow.

This week we had a really cool experience with service. So we started out our day with the plan to go to one of our inactives house and teach her a lesson. We planned the lesson and I was so excited to teach it because it was a good one. But we got to her house and she wasn't home. She had forgotten... she went to go dig potatoes instead. So we were kind of far away in a smaller area with not any good places to go contacting or anything, so we had this feeling to just call one of our members that we haven't been able to meet with for a long time because she has just been so busy and always working. So we called her and she was home! She said she was busy though with cooking for a birthday party she was getting ready for. So we told her we could just help her get ready and help her cook. She accepted and we went over to help her. Her niece was also there helping. She's not a member, and felt a little weird about us being there at first, but by the end of our time cooking together we were friends and she thought that it was so cool that we were here. Then yesterday at church our member told us that her niece had said she wants us to come see her and teach her! I was so happy to see the fruits of our service so quickly. We have had a few wonderful experiences like this this past week and my heart is just full of gratitude to our members for wanting to share the gospel, and to Heavenly Father for sending us so many miracles everyday.

Life is so good and I love being a missionary. It's hard sometimes when you have a day where everyone is saying "You believe what?", "Why are you even here?" and my favorite "Oh, I know you... I already know everything. You're just a cult." , yep, sometimes it's hard, but when you just work hard and love the people even if they don't really love you, then the Lord will bless you. God loves all of his children. That's for sure.

Well, I hope you have a wonderful week. I love you all.

Sister Leavitt

One of the Ninety and Nine

Sister Leavitt is doing well, back to work after her trip to Moscow.  She said she is now one of the “Oldest” out in her mission, and that made her realize it will be time for her to come home too soon.  She only has just over 6-months left.  Crazy how fast the time is going. Enjoy ~ Mamma K

When we walk to the bus stop on Monday mornings we pass through this little section where there are a bunch of little stores and stuff on one side and then on the other side there is an empty lot where people park there cars sometimes or just do what they want. But sometimes there is this guy there selling meat out of the trunk of his car. It's disgusting. I never know what kind of meat it is, but it always grosses me out. So I just had to tell you...  Like I said last week we were supposed to have transfers this week and I would be serving with Sister Labaron again, but of course plans changed and so we won't start serving together now until the 27th. We got to meet with our family this week and we did a lesson on eternal families. I love teaching this to people because it always brings a strong spirit and that makes me so happy. I get so happy when I think about this family getting to spend eternity together. That really is God's plan for us and when people know about it, it just makes their lives so much better! So, also we had this family history meeting this week, that was interesting and fun. I'm excited to work on family history when I get home and share the blessing of the gospel not only with those who are here on earth, but who have passed on also. We had a cool experience last night when we went looking for one of our inactive members. We had never been able to get her to answer her phone so we decided to just stop by. It took us a while to find her house and then when she opened the door she was less than thrilled that we had come. But we went in and just started getting to know her and then after a while she said, "Well, I guess since you're here we can pray together." And so we did and then after the prayer she said, "Well, I guess we can read out of the scriptures together too." So then we read out of 3 Nephi a little and talked and it turned out to be a really amazing visit for all of us and the spirit was able to teach us and bless us. I am just so happy that I am able to really be the hands of the Lord here for this time and bless the lives of his children the way he would bless them if he were here. So, things are just going well. We are planning and working hard so that we can find the people the lord has prepared to hear the gospel and things are going well. I love you all so much!

Love,

Sister Leavitt

Pants! What about them? Nothing...just Pants!

She’s BACK from getting a new passport in Moscow!!!!  Glad she has those “Magical Powers” and everything went well in Moscow.  She really does brighten up a dreary week! Can you just hear her singing “Oakcrest Style” for you?  Have a great week.  ~ Mamma K J

So, this week was quite an adventure, but everything turned out so well! We ran around all week and stayed really busy and worked hard. We have been working hard with Katya and Alexander we have set a baptisimal date with them for the 22nd of October, Alexander is so ready. He rocks and keeping the commandments and praying/ reading. He has such a desire to be a better person and learn more. Yesterday we taught them about Keeping the Sabbath day Holy and he said, "oh no, I probably am a sinner then because today I worked on fixing our car." It was funny, he just understands things so well! He would be baptized tomorrow if that were possible, but we are still working with Katya, she has a harder time accepting everything, and so we are working with them to be baptized on the same day, we want it to be something that will strengthen their family, because that's what the gospel does, it strenthens families. Anyways, so they are doing great. Katya crashed their car this week though, that's why Alexander was fixing it, and so they couldn't come to chruch. Bummer.

But in other news we went to Moscow on Friday. We were only there for one day and we were able to accomplish all of our tasks and come back to Volgograd the same night. It was a surprise to us all and when our Zone leader asked how we got back so fast I said it's because I have magic powers of course! (even though Lexi thinks I don't hahaha...) So really I just know that the Lord blessed us to be able to do everything quickly so that we could be here for our investigators.

On Saturday we had music night. I didn't think that we would be going so I didn't plan anything, but then we went and the senior couple that was in charge was so happy and they put me on the program... That is why I am so grateful that I worked at Oakcrest and I just have all sorts of songs stored in my brain for situations such as these. I sang I am a Child of God Oakcrest style. They loved it and so that's all that matters. Well, that's our week. Transfers are this week. I know... they came so fast! Sister Undozjorava and I are still serving in Volgograd, but I will be serving with Sister LaBaron (yep, again! I am so excited!) and she will be serving with a mini missionary. We are excited about having 4 sisters in our area and giving our branch a little boost. Well, that's all. I love you all!

Sister Leavitt

A funny thing happened on the way to the forum....

Oh my….never a dull moment with Sister Leavitt.  I told her to at least take time to take lots of pictures on her adventure this week.  I can’t wait to hear from her next week now.  J

I would just like to second that what Cameron said last week about his dislikes of being a missionary. Being sick is the worst thing you could wish for. It is so boring and all you want to do is go out and work, but if your mission mom finds out you did that, then you're in big trouble! Did I ever tell you about the Russian phobia of getting sick? Well, they are so afraid of getting sick. I swear they get sick more often because they're afraid of it too. It's so funny, but my health has been pretty good, so I can't complain. This week was full of the adventure that I like to call "The things that you have to do when you lose your passport in Russia." I know it's a long title, but I just couldn't put it in any other way. So now I guess I should tell you that YES I did indeed lose my passport in Russia, now I just hope that some weirdo isn't running around the whole world pretending to be me. We have had to spend a lot of time in the police stations this week because of it and that wasn't all that fun. But the police officers were nice. Last night my companion said to me, "well, now we know that if you want to have an adventure, all you have to do is lose your passport in Russia." And it's true. Oh, the police officer said that I could either live the rest of my life in Russia, or go to Moscow and get a new passport. I almost chose the living in Russia option, but then I remembered that in America we have mint oreos and Cafe Rio, and I changed my mind.

But that's that. So this week I have to go to Moscow. Last week school started in Russia and it was the craziest thing that I have ever seen! There was traffic everywhere and all of the little kids were dressed up in suits and dresses... it was so crazy!!! Also I had the opprtunity to go to a Russian Hospital, which is an experience that I never want to repeat, if I get sick while I'm here I vow that I will never go to one of those. YIKES!!!! So, our investigators are doing well, and we are still working so hard with them to get them ready to be baptized, we are also working like crazy trying to find the elect! It's so much fun! But that's all for this week. I love you and your little dog too.

Love,

Sister Leavitt

I Belong to the Church of Jesus Christ Of Latter Day Saints!

We were excited to get some great pictures that her Mission President sent.  She looks great and of course LOVES her mission.  Well worth the wait!  ~ Mamma K

Hello!

So this week has been so wonderful for me! We have had to opprotunity this week to serve and to teach so much and I love it! I am learning so much all the time about how this really is God's only true church on earth today, and how it blesses the lives of the people who receive this knowledge and work to live by the commandments and doctrine that he has given us. I am so happy about my life and about what I am doing. I have to tell you all that it is such hard work and somedays we walk on the streets and talk to everyone we can, and no one wants to listen or even talk to us, that's the hard part, but the best part is that everytime I bear my testimony to these people, even if they don't accept it, I feel the Holy ghost strenthening my testimony and making me stronger. I feel so much love for the people that I serve here and I am such a lucky girl for getting to serve on a mission. Our investigators are doing well. They each have their own challenges and struggles that they are working on, but we are trying our best to help them overcome these weak parts so that God can make them stronger through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. I don't have very much to say today, but I just want you all to know that I know that this chruch is true, I know that God is our father in heaven and that he knows us all and watches over us, and more than that, he wants us to succeed, he wants us to pray to him and learn more of him. I am so grateful for all that He has given me. I love you all and hope that this week you will be able to come to know that God loves you! Have a beautiful week!

Love,

Sister Leavitt

Suddenly I see, This is what I want to be.....

I forgot to post her email last week, so this week is a two for one week.  Enjoy!



Hey Hey Everybody! So I just thought that I would start off my email this week with an inpirational message courtesy of my mission president. I really liked it and I thought you would too. So enjoy the ispiration. Well, this week was really wonderful! We worked so hard and taught some pretty amazing lessons! I just read Cameron's email and I was impressed by his remark about silence... I think I'm going to try that one this week and see how it goes. We had zone conference this week, so that was fun and amazing as always. We did a really fun activity where we got white t-shirts and they put out ketchup and soy sauce and mustard and stuff and then we rubbed all that stuff all over the t-shirts. So the t-shirt was like our bodies all white and clean and the other stuff was like sin. Then we had to use laundry detergent and water and scrub our shirst until they were white again, and that was repentance, it was hard work to get all of that stuff out, but that's how it is with sin, it's hard to get it all out of your life, but once you do, you have a nice white and clean body again. So, for all of you teachers of youth, you may want to think about using that activity... I enjoyed it. Also we had an amazing lesson with Katya and Alexander this week! They are doing so well! We are hoping that they will get baptized some time next month. I have also realized this week how much the gospel is changing my own life, it's strange because I came on a mission hoping to help other people, but I think the person I've helped the most is myself, I am consantly amazed at the things Heavenly Father is willing to do for us if we only remember to ask. I love my life and I love my mission!!! Well, that was pretty much my week, I loved it! And I love you! Good luck with your lives, and remember, if you put the Lord first, then everything else will go smoother. :)

Until next time,

Sister Leavitt