First Week in PARADISE! January 20- January 26th

Hello Dear friends  :) 

Well....I'm no longer in Dry  Creek with Sister Paul, transfers were last week and it was a big change for me. But it was a good change, and left Rio Linda, CA on tuesday. So sunday and monday, I was packing and saying my goodbyes to all of the people down there. It was a bit busy haha so tuesday there was a lot of driving and I meet a lot of new people. 

Paradise is beautiful, and it is full of doctors. I live in house owned by a surgeon, the Hunts, both lovely people. Their house is gorgeous. The rest of our ward is full of doctors/nurses/medical people. so If I ever get sick- I am well taken care of haha and they're really nice too, so that's a plus! 

The rest of the week, Sister Dyson ( my new companion) helped me get all my stuff all put away and then we were off to work! This area is huge, and lots of green trees lol very different than Rio Linda so it was quite a change for me. 

I met alot of the ward members, and we went to visit some of our investigators so we were busy. Almost every night we are booked- work is happening! And that's always a great thing to have! 

I am adjusting well to the area, and Sister Dyson is helping me learn the area. Oh and we also drive a truck. That's right! We're driving a truck, it's awesome! haha exactly how you would picture sisters arriving in something, isn't it?! I guess the snow wasn't working really well with the car, so they changed to a truck and now we're set for cold weather. 

Overall, last week was full of new surprises and I get to start fresh all over again in a new area- So exciting!! I love meeting new people and helping them. so it should be funnn :) 

Oh, and here are some pictures from last week in Rio Linda with some of the people I was working with. I love you and hope you have a great week :)  

Love ya! 

Sister Matchett 

Pictures!! (some are silly, all of them are cute!!) 

Transfer Week: She's moved on to... Paradise!!

Hello again! 

Well, it was quite an eventful week. And we had Transfer calls- so that made it bit stressful lol all of us missionaries in the antelope area were predicting who was going to stay and go...not going to lie though....my prediction of leaving was right...so that means I am going to go to * drum rolll pleasse* 

Parardise :) 

ahhhh sweet. It's close to chico, and I get to be in the same zone as my trainer, sweet Sister Housely, yay!! I'm excited to see her again. It's been awhile since I've seen her, so it will be good to catch up and serve in the same zone again. Sister Paul is going to be training, and will be staying in Rio Linda for another 3 months( 2 transfers) so we were feeling kinda bittersweet about not getting to stay together for another transfer but she has gotten the area down and will help the lord bring about his work here with the wonderful new sister that comes in....so I'm excited for her and the new sister that will come in. Rio Linda is a great place to start off your mission, and the people are so humble! I love this area! but I'm looking forward to go up north a little bit, and experience another area and meet new people to help hasten the lords work.

 We had a lot of lessons, and teaching appointments so it was really busy. We have been working with alot of less actives, members, and picking up investigators as we've been working hard. I know that Sister Paul will baptize many here, I was able to plant seeds and help people get a step closer to baptism and that is a miracle as well.  I leave tomorrow, and will be in a new area so wish me luck! I'll be in paradise, baby! 

I hope all of you are doing well, and things are going well with school, work, and of course, life :) 

I apolgize for the shortness of this week's report- it's been crazyyy busy but I love it. I hope you all are reading the book of mormon and know how much you matter. You can make a difference just by doing those "small and simple things"- blessings do come and the Lord will help you. 

I love you all and hope this week is a good one! 

Until next time, 

peace out! 

Sister Matchett 

Jan. 6th- Jan. 13th

Dear Family and Friends :) 

How are you all? How did your week go?  I hope well! 

This week has gone by crazy fast.....heck..these last four weeks have gone by super duper fast lol next week would be my fourth transfer here so about four months for me to be in RIo Linda. I'll find out next week if I stay in good ol' RIo Linder for another month or not, so pray I get to stay! I love it here!  Sister Paul and I have seen many miracles come about and we are both loving it here. It's a great place to serve. The Lord's work is hastening and I have the opportunity to be apart of his work. What a blessing! 

We are involving the members in our efforts more now than ever and we are seeing so much success in our area. We are starting to get more ideas from them on who we can go and visit to possibly teach. I love this. Members and missionaries working together.....it's the best feeling to have. We are witnessing so many miracles! How has your missionary work been going? Any cool experiences/stories? 

Sister Paul and I are doing well, she makes me laugh so much hahaha and she is quite funny! She is great to work with and I love her personality. It's  a blast. I've been put with fantastic missionaries to serve around, and I couldn't be more blessed. 

So this morning Sister Paul and I were wanting to have a really big lunch but with breakfast so we had a brunch with the widow we live with ( Sister Forsyth) and it was a blast! We had bacon, eggs, and pancakes. We did what we usually do on Preparation day quickly then all went to the kitchen to cook. We had so much fun! We ate, talked, laughed, and of course took pictures!  I've put some pictures of it so you can see us all haha it was a good break for us all after a long week. 

I hope all of you are well, and that you are seeing success with whatever challenge you have been faced with. I love you all and hope you see how much you matter and know that the Lord is the details of your lives. He is there, we just have to ask him for help, and he will help us. 

Until next time, 

Sister Matchett 

Oh, and here are New Years Eve pictures(We were drinking sparkling cider- and it was yummmy!)  and pictures from Brunch today. Enjoy! 

First Letter of 2014 :)

Helllo again and Happy New Years! 

2014 is now here, how was the year of 2013 for you all? Was a good one? Were there things that you could improve on? Any new goals for the new year? I sure have a few lol 

 I know I had a lot to reflect on as I was planning for the next few weeks of our area (Rio Linda) with Sister Paul. We had a very busy year, and right after the start of the new year- we were off teaching and talking to everyone we met on the street, in the store, etc. We are so very excited to start this year, and have been very blessed by the Lord. This week was busy, like we were on the go. a lot. 

Yesterday, the 5th, we met up with a girl who we contacted on the streets. Kayla, wanted to meet up with us when we called and asked her if she wanted to learn more. So we met up with her yesterday around 4 pm, and she brought her two younger sisters and a friend. We taught the restoration to all four of them, invited them to baptism- they all accepted ( no date yet though- soon!) and all were eager to read the Book Of Mormon. We picked up four new investigators in just one lesson. That was so inspired! 

We were also able to set a date with one of investigators, Dixie, who has been investigating the church for quite a few years so that was another miracle we were able to witness. The list could go on and on. We are busy, but are being given so many blessings as we simply go out and find people to invite to learn more about the gospel. Mission Life is the best!! 

Since it's a new year, I was reading today in my studies on faith. How could I increase my faith in my savior Jesus Christ? What can I do to help bring about his work? 

I read in 1 Nephi 14:14, and this verse stuck out to me as I was reading: 

(this is a little part of the verse)

"... and upon the covenant people of the Lord, who were scattered upon the face of the earth and they were armed with righteousness and with power of God in great glory!" 

We as members of the Lord's church, are protected with his power to overcome the worlds attack on our morals, beliefs, and Christ's doctrine if we simply read from our scriptures, pray, go to church, go to the temple, etc. All simple answers we remember from Primary, but they really are the biggest things that strengthen our faith. If we can remember to do those things every day. We can all help the Lord bring about miracles and share the gospel with everyone. Our faith will increase.  I received an answer, and I felt the spirit testify of it's truth. I invite you all to look that up in 1 Nephi chapter 14- it's a great read. 

I hope all of you are well, and that your holidays were fun and enjoyable. I hope you remember how great you all are indiviually and know that the Lord knows you and loves you!  Have a great week!

Until next time, 

 Sister Matchett

Dec. 22nd- Dec. 29th

Happy (early) New Years! 

How was your Christmas? What was your favorite gift you got or did a witness a Christmas miracle? I hope you all had a great Christmas! I sure did. Thank you for all the letters/ gifts. They made  my day all so much better!

This week was a bit off because of it being Christmas, also because we had more meetings to go to help us really use that time to be more effective missionaries. So it was bit slow on some days, but we were still able to witness miracles everyday. The Lord has blessed Sister Paul, and I so very much in our area. We had a great Christmas in Rio Linda, and went around to visit some of our investigators, less actives, and other active members in the area with goodie bags and a pass-a-long cards ...so we went out to work. No days off for us! haha It was a blast though, and we did sing a few Christmas carols too. It was fun! The best part was getting to skype home to my family, ohh man! I loved it so much! It the first thing that Sister Paul and I did, we called home from our Ward Mission Leaders house- and he was laughing at us as we both were using our Ipads to call...we got a tad bit confused at first, but we figured it out and got to see our families. We were doing very well. 

Attached are some pictures from Christmas Eve, and some from Christmas day with some of our investigators as well as sister Paul and I. It's a blessing to be here in Rio Linda, and the people are so kind and help us sisters out all the time. 

We had a District meeting with some missionaries in the Antelope Area, and all went around and shared our testimonies on Jesus Christ, we all felt the spirit so strong. It was the coolest thing to see how all of our testimonies have grown and how we had the opportunity to share that with people especially on the day of our Savior's birth- December 25th. It was a very neat experience. 

The rest of the week was great! We picked up 3-4 new investigators and are meeting with more people to help the Lord hasten his work. It's great! 

I hope the Holidays are treating you well, and that you know how special you all are to be members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. It is the best thing we all have, and it does make a big difference on our lives.I love you all and wish you well this week. Keep going along, it gets easier when we face trials with the help of our Savior. 

Until next time, 

Sister Matchett 

Christmas morning pajamas with her companion, Sister Paul, and the sister they live with. 

Sister Paul, an investigator, and Sister Matchett on Christmas day

Sister Paul and Sister Matchett went caroling on Christmas day with other missionaries in their district. She loves her new companion!