Farewell to Freeport

Well, all good things must come to an end.

Tomorrow I will be transferred to Bourbonnais North! I will definitely miss Freeport and all the people here, but I am super excited for everything that lies ahead!

Since coming to Freeport my testimony and my confidence has grown so much!

Mosiah 2:21 I say unto you that if ye should serve him who has created you from the beginning, and is preserving you from day to day, by lending you breath, that ye may live and move and do according to your own will, and even supporting you from one moment to another—I say, if ye should serve him with all your whole souls yet ye would be unprofitable servants.

I have done my best to serve here. And I have hopefully helped someone here along the way, but in the end God has blessed me so much by sending me here to Freeport and there is no way I can repay him for all the blessings I have received since I came here.

 

god is good

This week we went on exchanges! So i got to spend MORE time with sister smith! This time in Elgin instead of Freeport. 

It was great. We went to go visit a less active named Megan. We taught her the gospel of Jesus Christ and then before we leave we talked some with her mom. She was talking about the Philippians and I asked where she lived when she was there and it turns out they knew the Hills!! and the one and only JANESA HILL played soccer with Megan in the Philippians. It was so amazing and just a very strong confirmation that I am where I am supposed to be and also that Janesa is probably the coolest person I will  ever meet. I literally can't go anywhere without running into someone that knows Janesa. (I LOVE YOU NESA)

ahhhhh but mission life is so great and life is good!!

Pictures-
-Sister Smith, Megan's mom, me, and Megan!
-Sister Allred and I with Daya (she's such a dry Mormon even wears her ctr ring and reads her book of Mormon. Someday she'll be baptized.) And La'Shay! 

a day in the life

This week the Sister Training Leaders came and just paid us a little visit and so I got to spend some time with Sister Smith!! yay. I literally love her! And she was Sister Madsen's trainer so it was just fun. We had originally planned to see so many people and have a church tour and do so much that day but then EVERYTHING cancelled. And then the sister training leaders came and Sister Smith and I just went to go do some tracting/stop bys (which lets be honest, usually aren't as fun as lessons and church tours) but we had a great time. It just showed me how great missionary work can be and that God is going to make sure that everything that needs to happen will happen.

So Sister Smith and I go to go stop by Dont'e (A less active and recent convert of a few years) His street is super small and you can only park on one side. It is really hard for missionaries because if you turn down it than someone has to get out and back you up and it is just always a struggle. And sister Smith had never been to Freeport before so she doesn't know and turns down his street but then gets confused and stops for a little bit to figure out what to do but then someone pulls up behind us and drives around us and throws a cardboard box at our car............ 

Anyway we get things figured out but I have to get out and back her up of course and I am a little on edge because of the cardboard box and someone else was coming down this TINY street but finally we are parked and we can go see Dont'e. 

We talk to him, set up an appointment (yay!) then get back in the car and drive away. As we are driving away however 2 police cars turn down this street (I honestly have no idea how so many people and cars can be on the tiniest street) so we go to a different area. But half way there I realize I don't have the phone and I must have dropped it as I was backing sister smith up. But Sister Smith is super wise and just says "well this is just one of those things where God tells us that there is someone else we still need to talk to" 

So we go back and say a prayer that we will find the phone. And we do! It was lying in a puddle of mud but it still works fine so no worries. 

But don't forget that the police turned down this street before we left so as we are looking for the phone there are cops all over this street looking for something else.... But we still have to find out why God needed us to come back! So we knock on a few doors. We ended up giving away 4 Book of Mormons on that Street! All of those contacts were just great! We met Jasmine who at first tells us she isn't interested and she doesn't believe in God but then we share a scripture from the Book of Mormon with her and she says "Well Actually my sister who lives in California is Mormon and I actually have a book of Mormon and I think I will read it tonight." What? then she says "This just showed me that everything happens for a reason." The next person we contacted was Christy and by the end of the contact she was crying and hugging us.

Sometimes as a missionary you have days where it seems like no one wants to talk to you and you are just annoying everyone. BUT YOUR NOT. We are literally just going around and making people happy. 

It was just a really good day. Even though nothing went as planned. 

And thats just a typical day in the life of Sister Corbett

Someday Sister Allred and I will take pictures together, but until then you will have to go off of the interpretations of the kids we teach. Haha! These are by La'Shay!

"I don't want to go to the celestial kingdom, because what if MLK Jr isn't there?"

My subject line is from one of the kids we taught yesterday as we were teaching them the plan of salvation. Teaching kids is fun haha

A few days ago we had a lesson with a less active and his non-member wife. We were really excited for this lesson for a while now because missionaries in the past have had a really hard time getting into their home. We got there and started talking about the Book of Mormon. Unfortunately she was NOT willing to read it because she had read other books about the Book of Mormon so that should be enough. Anyway it was kind of a sad lesson where it was very clear they weren't interested. But Sister Allred is an AMAZING missionary and was so bold on how even if they don't think they need to that doesn't change the fact and the truth that they do need to read the Book of Mormon. We were expecting this lesson to be different but we are glad we had that experience becuase we both walked away with stronger testimonies of the Book of Mormon and how it truly changes lives and hearts. There is literally power in the Book of Mormon and if you can just get someone to hold it or read a little part of it it is amazing.

Right after this we gave a Book of Mormon to a man by the library. He turned out to not be ready to recieve the gospel right now, but he talked about how he had just had a really uncomfortable experience at the library (it was a rough week for the library - we saw at least 2 people get arrested) and our testimonies changed his day. He sent us the LONGEST text about how he believes that we were led by God to talk to him that day. It is so cool to see how God was using us to help these people and although the day NEVER goes as planned, if you are listening to the spirit, it will ALWAYS be a good day!

I know the Book of Mormon  can change your life! It contains the fullness of the gospel or in other words everything you need to be happy now and for eternity. Just read it. Right now. Go do it.

Anyway, this week has been great. So great. I LOVE sister Allred, I LOVE Illinois, and I LOVE the The Gospel.

- Sister Hannah Corbett

PICTURE- we have an investigator named Amanda who has been doing really well lately! Her daughter Aubrianna drew this during sacrament. She is so cute.

LIFE IS GOOD

This week has seemed like the longest week. It seems like a month, but also just a really long day.

We have been working SO hard. And it is paying off!

Some of the highlights were:
-Teaching Karen the restoration! It was a solid lesson and the best restoration lesson sister Allred and I have both had. It is fun to teach her becuase she understands really well.

- We got a refferal for a family that lives In forreston and we were able to contact them right away! Turns out they met with Missionaries when they were living in Texas and thier son actually wanted to get baptized! Francis the mom said she wasn't ready and Brian the dad wasn't ready because he has word of wisdom problems so they never actually did because they wanted to wait until they could all do it together. but it was great and there is definitely potential there!

I just love the gopel. It is so true.  We have been trying to be better at contacting.  Because more contacting= a better day and a bigger teaching pool.  But it also means you get a lot of "no's". Some days it seams like everyone I talk to is trying to convince me that everything I'm doing is wrong! But somehow I am happier than ever. WIth every "no" I just get a stronger and stronger testimony that this Church is true! Because it really is. I KNOW IT

Love you all,
Sister Corbett

PICTURE - Sister Allred and I about to head out in the freezing cold. Going to go Find, teach, and Baptize! (also thanks Jon and Dani for the Hat and Scarf)

THE ROCKFORD SOUTH ZONE! 

Freeport Round 3

We had a really good week. Sister Allred is so great and just the epitome of the word Missionary. She is so great to work with and I am just so excited for this transfer. 

There is a quote that I really like by the man himself GORDON B HINKLEY

"I wish to be up and doing, I wish to face each day with resolution and purpose. I wish to use every waking hour to give encouragement, to bless those whose Burdens are heavy, to build faith and strengthen testimony."

another good quote:

"When the Lord said 'Lengthen your stride,quicken your pace, heighten your reach, widen your vision, and stretch your capacity,' he was in reality saying 'expect a miracle, for these are the stuff from which miracles are made. Thre prophet says, 'do it' and he indicates the time is NOW" - Hartman Rector Jr

I had a really good week this week. And Sister Allred is pushing me to new levels of missionary work! I love her and I am learning so much from her already.

I am sorry but my emails are getting worse and worse. this one was incredibly short. so sorry.....I'm not exactly sure what I need to write in this email this week but I hope you all have a good new year full of new goals and a stronger resolution to do good. 

P.S. Turns out there is a super classy art museum in freeport. way to go freeport.