This Week

 

Hello good people! I hope that you are having a spectacular week! This week was one of the best weeks of my mission. I have learned that I need to be more aware of Jesus' love for me. I was at a member's house and their little granddaughter was going through our bags. Part of me prays that she doesn't pull out something embarrassing, but luckily this this time she pulled out a picture of Jesus Christ. With a huge smile on her face, she turned to me and said "Jesus Loves You."There was nothing but pure Honesty in her voice. At that moment I realized that I have been saying that to people out here on my mission, but nobody had ever said it to me. I forgot that I needed to hear that at times. I have always been the person to lift people up but I think I get so lost in it, I forget to remember my worth to my Heavenly Father. I tried to hold back tears as I soaked in what she said. I am so grateful for those small reminder that Heavenly Father places in front of me that help me remember who I am and who I can turn to. For those who may not hear that their Savior Loves you as much, He does. So Much.

 

The sweet girl that reminded me of the Saviors love.

Please enjoy pictures of recent mission life.

 

Goodbye Friend

 

New Year's Eve

 

Sweet Dot

 

We went Africa on All  of them!

 

New Kids on the Block!

 

Double Dutching Hard core!

 

Pretty cool Kids!

Love this Mission! Have a wonderful week!

 

The People Around Me

Elder Vance : Hope

Hope can have so many definitions. In my opinion, Hope is believing that good can come out of any situation. Elder Vance encourages me to have hope in myself and others. He is constantly in a good mood and he always finds a way to make everyone smile. Missionary work isn't easy, but Elder Vance's hope in our Heavenly Father is inspiring. He expresses his trust in the Lord with enthusiasm and confidence! I am so happy to have cool kids like him around me!

Transfer Meeting

So this past Wednesday was transfer meeting! For those that don't know what that is, basically it's a meeting that we have when missionaries are being assigned a new area. My companion Sister Waters was leaving so I received a new companion. I was nervous at first to be getting a new companion, especially because I still felt so fresh and unfamiliar. I was a little scared to be on my own without a trainer. Then there is the horrible fear that my companion and I wouldn't be in harmony. Throughout the week, I was thinking of who I could possibly be with (out of like the 10 missionaries that I know) and one Sister kept popping into my head. Sister Cooper is another African American missionary from the East coast. We met at the Christmas Party and she seemed like a pretty chill person. For some reason I kept thinking about her and I being together as a companionship. When I got to transfer meeting, Sister Waters asked me who I thought my new companion was going to be. I pointed right to Sister Cooper.I had never felt so confident about my answer. I had the feeling to go up and talk to her for a bit before the meeting started. She told me that she kept thinking about me this week and that we were going to be companions! Trying not to freak out, I told her I felt the same! I personally didn't want to get my hopes up so I tried to push the thought out of my head. As they were anouncing the new companionships, I noticed Sisetr Cooper still hadn''t been called. Finally they announced the Montgomery Area. They usually show your picture and your new companion on a big screen.

"Sister Neufville and Sister Cooper will be serving together." My jaw practically unhinged and the whole room gasped. I tried not to scream. To be honest I was pretty freaked out. I had never "called" anything and have been right before. I quickly gathered my things and went to meet her. Her eyes were filled with tears and we were both shaking. We both felt the spirit super strong and we knew we were put together for a reason. We've only been together for a short time, but it feels like we've known each other before. We are both Liberian. We both have siblings in Africa. Our dads even have the same name!!! It's pretty freaky! I feel this companionship happened for a reason and I can't wait to find out what it is! 

 

 

We were also matching that day. No, it was not planned.

 

Sister Waters: Faith

My dear Trainer/ Companion Sister Waters will be leaving me on Wednesday. I have truly cherished every moment that we have had together. She has witnessed my awkward transition and did it with patience.She never once allowed me to feel inadequate! In my opinion, she is the perfect example of faith. Anytime that I felt like quitting, would always tell me to have faith in my calling! She sees the end product in every person she comes into contact with. She "believes in things which are not seen, that are true". She has been an amazing example to me and I will never forget our adventures in Mo-Town! Part of me hopes I have shown her just how much I love her. She is a leader in Faith, and in my opinion... those are the best leaders. I will miss her dearly and she has impacted me.

I will be staying in Montgomery and hopefully I don't burn down the city, but I am excited to continue on this journey with my new companion! Good people, If you want to write me my email address is 

cheryl.neufville@myldsmail.net

I love you all! Stay Rad!

3 Months

 

Just a few hours ago I had a "Come to Jesus Moment" as my beautiful companion Sister Waters calls it. It is that moment when you realize that you are going through something and you are finally coming to terms with it and talk about without feeling weak or insecure. These past few days I found myself doubting every reason for being out here. I was doubting my ability to teach and I felt like I wasn't being myself. I honestly had never felt so out of my comfort zone. I found myself longing for my old life and my own friends. Talking about my past life with people here wasn't hard or painful but afterwards I would find myself longing for those memories. I wanted to be in a studio practicing pirouettes or holding sparklers at my friends' weddings. I felt like everyone else was moving on and I was at a constant, but as I was wrapped in my sky blue blanket, I realized something. I had met people here that I never would have met back home. I am attempting to make more life long friendships. I started thinking about the laughs that I had out here and I realized these were good memories. I am living my life right now and I will be able to tell my friends and family back home about the amazing moments that I am living right now. I got out of bed, went to the bathroom to wipe of any smudged make-up, and I revealed my problems to Sister Waters. She has been out longer than me, but I was so thankful that she had gone through the same exact thing when she first came out. I expected to get a "suck it up" like I do to myself, but she let me know that I needed to experience this so I can grow and move on. She told me that the easy thing is going home. And it really is so easy to say, "You know what, this isn't for me. I'm going home." But who would benefit from that. I know my mother would be so sad to see me give up and I know I would regret it. Sister Waters let me know that Christ wasn't exempt from heartache. When he was suffering for us, there was a time when God wasn't with him. I'm not sure if I had felt completely alone, but Christ experienced that emptiness that we sometimes feel. I know I will have more trials than just missing my past life, but forgetting myself and serving others will make me full. I know it. My dear friends, I am not perfect. I trip over air and I forget things almost instantly sometimes, but I am so thankful to have not only people in this life that help me see my true potential, be a Heavenly Father that loves and cares for me. I am so happy to have made it this far. Who knows what next transfer has in store! If you have any advice on how you dealt with insecurities please let me know. I love you all and even though you aren't there physically, I can feel your support and prayers. Thank you.