Dec 23-30

We just got off the phone with Sage. Always such a great time speaking with her as a family and hearing of her adventures and the people she meets and is able to come in contact with.She has met people from the Philippines, Ghana, Chile, Tonga, New Zealand.....The food is much better than the MTC. We are grateful for the delicious meals she is receiving and those that prepare the meals for her. She in enjoying spending time with people, looking for opportunities to speak of Christ and His love for others!She had the opportunity to go into London and see some of the sites. It was SUPER busy because it was Christmas Eve.She had the chance to call Christmas Eve and talk with Sumer's side of the family and then Christmas day she had the chance to speak to Buddy's side of the family.She commented how amazed at how fast the time is going by! That is such a great thing to hear because it helps us to know she is enjoying what she is doing, she is happy, and she is at peace. As for her family, time seems to be passing pretty slow but then we realize it has been Over a month completed!Here is link to her pictures! From Sage!! What a week everyone! I know you guys were so worried but I have returned!! This will be my last few days at the MTC and my first few days in the field. Such a change of scenery and pacing but I've had so many great experiences already and seen so many tender mercies that I'm so grateful for! Beginning with the MTC, that Sunday-Tuesday were some of the most spiritually uplifting days! We had an amazing church service with great talks, classes on Monday, and “Chewsday” we did a church history tour seeing all the sights in Preston that were visited during the first mission to England and we had a testimony meeting where almost every missionary spoke! Saying goodbyes to trainers and friends was hard, but I know that God is always with them and that they're going to do so many amazing things on their missions and change so many lives! I will never forget those amazing missionaries I got to begin this journey with! ❤️ A huge thanks to my family as well for sending a package of our homemade Christmas candy! I'm so Incredible grateful and everyone at the MTC loved it! Travel to the mission field on Wednesday where we got to take a 5… hour… bus…. ride….( the point speaks for itself). We arrived at the mission office in Central London and did orientation and I met my first companion sister Wilkinson! She's already a super amazing trainer and she puts up with me so she's even more of a saint. We traveled to our area via the tubes (what a spooky name) and immediately started with teaching and meeting. Then we got to go back to the office Thursday for the Christmas party! Super fun with a service projects of making blankets and then went caroling around the town! We played a ton of Christmas games and I got given a paradox of a beautiful ugly Christmas sweater ( don't know how that works but it does). Also there is no ice in England so my water is suffering but I have taken it upon myself to make a bottle of ice everyday because it is necessary for my hydration. I must work on my desire to tolereate warm water 🙃 Friday was a great introduction to missionary work and I got to know my district who are all super great and highly motivated missionaries and I can tell we're going to accomplish a lot of the goals we're setting! One of the Elders bakes too which is a massive blessing for our weekly meetings🙏. The Saturday after was a feel for a typical England mission. We got to deliver a Book of Mormon to a request and as we were going, we get off on the wrong stop and it began to pour rain (like coming in sideways soaking everything and everyone), we walk 30 minutes in the Rain, and finally find the apartment having to walk across the roofs of the shops to get to the door. But we met some super nice people on the way back and had some great conversations so everything happens for a reason 😅. That was followed by a great dinner appointment with the nicest family and the food was amazing!! If you can get through the MTC meals, remember there is light at the end of the tunnel! We met the ward on Sunday and they are some of the nicest people I've ever met! They are so welcoming and they've helped me to feel way more at home in this area I'm unfamiliar with. I'm so grateful for them and I can tell we're already going to get along so great! Plus we get to play volleyball with them every Friday so I might come home as a pro-player so get ready for that! There's so much more I could talk about but I'll just end with how grateful I am to have this opportunity! I'm not going to lie it is so overwhelming at the beginning and I know that if I didn't have the constant reassurance of the spirit and the desire to share the joy of the gospel, I would be having a much harder time! I'm grateful to everyone who has supported me in this and I carry each of you in my heart as I do this work! During the testimony meeting, one of the sisters said “God sometimes destroys plans that will destroy us” I know this to be absolutely true as the plans I was making were being destroyed and I was angry and completely lost. But as soon as I adjusted my plans to follow his will, I have never felt closer to His love. He has a great plan for each and every one of us and it's through His love we are given the ability to choose how we follow it but I am so grateful for the love, understanding and thoughtful consideration He applied to not only my path but to every one of his children's journeys! Stay safe, stay warm, and I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas and make sure to share all the love you can with those around you! Merry Christmas Everyone!! Sister Russell