Blessed in Birmingham: Look Up and Drink It!

I can't believe I've never taken a picture with a famous black taxi!
These were invented in Coventry BTW.. I wasn't intentionally wearing all black
to blend in with the cab, but it happened. I totally look like a nun huh? Yikes.

Lol. You know you're in England when they have
to post a sign about not putting tea bags down the toilet. Hahaha!

Dear Fam,

The rain did not stop this week...welcome to England! We did our best to keep our spirits high and continued to find even when we were soaked to the bone! It's definitely not the easiest thing to keep smiling when you've been tracting in the rain for hours, but I am reminded of Elder Choi's talk at General Conference about looking up and drinking it! You can't change the weather, but you can change your attitude! :)

Thursday. It poured all day long.
Hence the hot coco @ Starbucks! #whitegirls

Just the cutest blonde you've ever seen.

Selfie under the brolly.

️

Bishops fancy Land Rover! So fun!

We had my last Zone Conference on Friday. The spirit was in great abundance and the training that we received were exactly what Sister Olsen and I needed. The STL's gave one about not using filler words when we introduce ourselves and when we teach. "Hi! So sorry to disturb you. We're just missionaries for our church and we are sharing a message about Jesus Christ today? Do you maybe have time to listen to our message?" Yikes!#1- never apologise for sharing the gospel with ANYONE! #2- we are not just missionaries, we are the LORD'S missionaries! Take pride in that! #3- We don't want them to get back to us another time when they might be more interested; the elect are ready NOW!

This training was SO needed! Their other training was about having urgency but not anxiety. They explained how we can be anxiously engaged in a good cause, without having anxiety about it. It was really helpful!

Grass, rain, and a horsie!

My last Zone Conference.
What a wonderful meeting it was! #IloveCov

It was then time for the departing testimonies. Elder Lawson (going home in the same group as me) went first and I was the final one. You always imagine when it will be your time to stand up and do it, but never really think it will be your time. What a tender moment that was for me. My heart swelled with incredible gratitude for the opportunity that I have had to serve here in the EBM and for the relationship that I have gained with my Saviour. I relayed how humbling it has all been for me. As I was able to give my "dying knowledge" to the zone, I could only testify through my tears that if we love our Saviour, we will be obedient and we will work hard! No excuses, just give every ounce of everything that you have to Him. It was incredibly surreal to stand there and reflect on the fastest 17 & 1/2 months of my life. I don't know where the time has gone, but I sure am grateful for the memories that I have been able to create whilst in the Lord's service. The people that I have met have surely changed the very core of who I am. I am forever changed by my mission and am so thankful that I accepted the call to serve!

The beautiful Gosia on her special day!!
I love this girl so much!!

Coventry's best!

The Elders had a beautiful baptism on Saturday of the one and only Gosia Nowak from Poland! I have been here during her whole conversion process and it had been an absolute joy to see the changes that have come in her countenance. She was so excited and glowed after her special day. She is such a tender spirit who has been SO prepared by the hand of the Lord. We look forward to many good things from her in the next few years! Such a great example to me!!

I always feel like a giant when we go to Bishop's house for dinner..
It's dated back to the 1500's! No wonder everything is small in there!!

The Masih's and the Siduh's.
Just the most wonderful Indian families ever!

We went tracting after the baptism on Saturday and it seemed to be a total fluke. It was raining and cold and nobody wanted to know us (or Jesus). We sat on this pathetic excuse of a bench and just contemplated the time we had spent knocking these doors, simply wondering if it was where we were supposed to be. We bowed our heads in prayer and ask Heavenly Father where He needed us to go. We hopped on our bikes and followed the spirit! We came around a corner to see a woman on the pavement. Helen was her name and she proceeded to share her spiritual journey with us. She was born into a Pagan home (witchcraft and stuff), began going around to different churches, and is now a Baptist. Helen told us that she loves to learn about other religions and doesn't understand why the Bible had to stop. Woot! We testified about a living prophet and the Book of Mormon and she was thrilled! She was so calm and open about her spiritual journey and welcomed us to her home. What a blessing this was! The Lord sent us to that area as an act of obedience (seeing if we would follow Him), then he tested our patience by no one being interested, and finally He wanted to see if we would faulted or if we would finish by coming to Him for guidance through humble prayer. He did answer us and the miracle did come! We look forward to seeing her next week!

Sue and Bernard took us for lunch at Las Iguanas

This is how a lot of the keys look in this country! Pretty cool!

As Sunday comes around, I always feel the need/desire for more strength! It's almost as though my cup is nearly empty and I need to be filled up! It is physical exhaustion, as I give my 110% during the week and I feel as though I am crawling to the Sacrament table in utter desperation for the strength that only the Saviour can provide. It is also spiritual exhaustion, in the sense that we teach all week long and I simply desire to sit in the three classes on Sunday and just be taught and strengthened by the words that people have prepared. It has been a beautiful observation for me and I am sincerely so grateful for the opportunity to be given the strength that I desire on the Lord's Holy day! "Sunday will come!"

I still have 3 solid weeks left and am excited to build this area up as much as we possibly can!! It is getting very real and there is absolute no time to waste! When Elder O'Hare asked what our #1 motivation was this week we looked at each other and simply said "SUNSHINE!" We look forward to seeing the sun a lot this week, as well as, many smiling faces who are ready to accept the gospel! Woot! The miracles are just around the corner! Have a nice week lovelies!

Love from GB,

Sister Sydney Jones

**Also, we fulfilled one of my mission goals today and went golfing!! Woot! It was awesome!**