What a mission is all about!

ok so this week has been a little different. In a way i feel like I’m not a missionary. I’m just a friend helping all these people out. Lorenzo is 19 years old and he looks so much older like 26 ish and he has a little girl Sadie who is just the cutest. Lorenzo’s mom is less active and we are starting to teach both of them. We had an amazing lesson with Lorenzo the other day. He actually teared up. He has had a rough past and it’s just really sad because he didn’t know really how he could get past it all. He has had missionaries before and almost got baptized. I think he was converted to the missionary and not the gospel. so that’s really sad. We talked to him about what the atonement is. How Christ suffered in the garden of gethsemane and died on the cross for us and that in the garden of gethsemane he felt all that we have to go through pain, suffering, and sin. He felt it all. He is the only person on earth that knows what we go through every day. We are never alone in our suffering because Christ suffered it all for us so that we can use the atonement. We told him stories about our past because he felt like we were perfect like we have never felt pain. Then he opened up to us after that and told us he has dreams about his past and he can’t forget it. he can’t forgive of forget and so we talked about what a priesthood blessing is and what it can do. so it was silent for a really long time he was looking at the floor then he asked if he could get a blessing. so tonight the bishop is going to give him one. it makes me so sad that i might be getting transferred because me and sister Harris work so well with each other and he has never opened up to any missionaries like this before. I cry when I think about transfers and I hate when people bring it up. I hate how missionaries are so focused on numbers and other silly things. and not on the people that need our help. Now i know why I’m here and i pray every day to stay because he needs me and Sister Harris. i know one day he is going to be baptized. i don’t have to be the missionary that asks him or is there for it. i just want to get him to the point that he knows without a doubt that this gospel is true and that this is Christ’s church. That it has been restored. i want to help him get to the temple so he can be sealed to his little girl. I want him to find a wife that will marry him in the temple that will help him grow. He is an amazing guy and he thinks he’s worthless. He dropped out of school and is scared to go back. I told him I dropped out and got my GED and it was hard but I did it. That helped him have hope, that he can be someone. i love my mission. If he is the only person i help my whole mission it will be worth it..

We did service for this lady Sandra. She is going through a big divorce and she is raising this teen on her own. Brother Finch from the 6th ward gave us her as a referral and she trusts us. She reminds me of my sister Jessica. it made me happy. i told her that and she told me that makes her feel good. It’s Like we are family in a way. She has this secret garden and we are helping her finish it.

We also have an investigator her name is little bit and she is getting rid of a bunch of fire wood so we are giving it all to Sandra. I’m getting so close to all these amazing people Linda is getting baptized this Saturday on the 31 and I’m just so happy for her. I can’t leave these people. It’s going to be so hard we find out Saturday if I stay or go. I know that God is part of this work and the president will send me where i need to be. He is called of God and i know he is my president and i sustain him. So many amazing things are happening right now. i just want you to know I’ve never been so happy in my whole life. i got to the point on Tuesday during Lorenzo’s lesson that im not here to tell him this is what you need to know and then let him figure it out on his own. im here to help him got to the point to really knows that this gospel is true. i taught a lesson for the first time on Tuesday without being scared i was going to mess up or scared that what i said was wrong. i had confidence. i know that what i said was from my heart and was true. it was like i was talking to family and that’s what we need to strive for as missionaries. i can’t say ill always have that much confidence but that day i did and so far i have. I’m so happy and i want you all to know that’s what a mission is all about. It is to help people grow and it’s to help you to grow. Don’t just go on a mission and count down the days. We are here to help people and if im wrong well then that’s what ever. That’s why im here and that’s all that matters to me. Well today is going to be fun we are going on a hike with the YSA and then we are going to a BBQ. Woot! love you all





Love Sister Steen

P-day Service

These are pictures of our day of service. Helping our "Gamer Investigator" move! His stuff is so cool!!

"Zachary you know which game this hat is from!"

May 19, 2014

Scary Art

ok ok so this week has been weird. hahaha can’t really remember what happened but i do know we have a bunch of new investigators and some formers as well which is amazing. Woot! We have been doing service a lot. We were walking one day and i saw this old guy sweeping his drive way. so we went over there and i talked to him while sister Harris swept and then we traded off and we got it done in no time. it was a hot day poor guy :) umm we have this couple that has been investigating the church for a while. We call them internigators. haha they are so cool! He is a huge gamer but he isn’t in to that xbox life. Just PlayStation. it’s what ev!! He still likes the same games i do so it’s cool. So he is so good that the company lets him play for them and if he sees people cheating he can call them and they will find the person and watch them for a while and if they catch them cheating he will kick them off. He has this man cave full of OH MAN millions of dollars’ worth of things. Signed posters and action figures and he is really in to star wars! oh man!! I’ll have to ask him if i can take pictures for you all. It’s pretty sweet! well me and sister Harris decided that we are going to help them move to their new apartment today instead of going to pday because we can do anything on pday and service is just better all around. We are kinda sick of all the drama in our zone so we are just staying in Yakcity today :) we have an investigator who is 89 years old. He is a cute old man and in our last appointment with him at the end he gave us a hug and he decided to kiss my neck. it was funny and sister Harris and our member there both got cheek kisses. I don’t know why but i always get the strange neck kisses from old people. bahaha I better wear a turtle neck ;) anyway Linda is still on date for the 31!! She needs all the prayers she can get though because the adversary is working on her which is scary! i miss you all and love you so much have an amazing week :)



Love Sister Steen

We were tracting in our neighborhood and long story short an Indian guy gave us pepsi. He wants us to give him a Book of Mormon but we have to bring it to the Shell gas station that he owns. Ha ha Rich people ;-)

 This is what I see every day. The orchards are so pretty. I think this is a peach one.

 Our neighborhood

 Cheela the chinchilla. We were home alone and we just wanted to hold the chinchilla. It took forever but we finally did it! Ha ha

Game night. This is Sister Harris. It was freaking awesome! Long story short. I WON!!!

May 12, 2014

I got to talk to my family yesterday on skype for mother’s day and it was so fun. I miss you all so much. I was trying to figure out what to say to you this week and I just want you all to know I love my mission. I love getting out of my comfort zone even when at times it makes me sick to my stomach. lol I love knowing I was called of God to do this amazing work, to find his children, my brothers and sisters and teach them the Gospel of Jesus Christ. the church that was on this Earth when Christ was here, the one true church that has all the fullness of the gospel. I know it’s true. I’ve been told personally by God multiple times that the holy ghost helps you know for yourself by helping you feel peace and happiness. When you pray and ask God for help and guidance and truth. The way you will know is by the holy ghost. He only gives you the good feelings. I’ve learned this on my mission. Things happen on your mission that make you second guess yourself. I did that and it scared me. I second guesses God and it made me feel sad. so I prayed and asked God if what this person said true and why do i feel so bad in side and i realized during our lesson that the spirit couldn’t be present because of the anger. We couldn’t have the holy ghost with us so the adversary was there full strength and i didn’t know what I was feeling. I now know only truth is followed by comfort and peace, happiness and warmth. I know that God answered my prayers and I know this church is the one true church on this earth today. it’s the only church that has no confusion. we go to church to worship our Father in heaven not to bash other churches. I’ve heard lots of people that we run into on the streets say our church teaches about the Mormons and how bad they are and that makes me sad. I know other churches are good. I know that we all worship the same God and we all strive to get to the same place. I just wish I could be home in Illinois being a missionary there. Teaching them what i teach 100s of people a day. Teaching them about the restoration of the gospel and how God called the prophet Joseph Smith to translate the Book of Mormon by the power of God. When i watch the Restoration DVD i just feel so much peace and I am able to be converted to the gospel myself and help the testimony I have to grow. I know if I didn’t serve a mission i wouldn’t have had the opportunity to really strengthen my understanding about the gospel. and my testimony would not be as strong as it is now. When we teach the plan of salvation I always wish I could just really know what people are thinking because it’s so amazing. we actually have a purpose on this earth. We actually have a reason to have a body. i didn’t really know what our purpose was here. i mean i knew we all want to get to heaven and we all have to be the best we can to get there. but what if you mess up. What if you fall away then you’re done for! Right? wrong!!!! God sent his son to suffer in the garden of gethsemane, to die on the cross for us, every one of Gods children So that we can have Christ’s atonement. I never knew what the atonement really meant. As a teen i didn’t know. I thought that, well I’m going downhill fast and i can’t get out of it so I’m done. i give up. I’m glad i never gave up or i wouldn’t be where i am now. By reading in the book of Mormon i found out what the atonement was for and how to us it. i don’t know if it was just me or if all teens feel this way but it’s so nice to find out for yourself truth and what things really are as you grow to have faith in God. to really show him you trust Him and will follow Him. you will be able to repent of sins of small and big mistakes that happen in your life. Not one person in this world is perfect. We all sin. We all mess up but that what the atonement is for. This is where you show God you have faith in Him. Where you show him you trust him enough to ask for forgiveness. I promise you He will forgive you. i was reading in a talk i got from my eye doctor, Brother Winters, about the atonement and i realized i wasn’t using the atonement really at all. i wasn’t showing God i had faith in him. i was trying to do all this on my own and basically he told me i can’t do missionary work on my own. if i want success i need God to be on one side and Christ to be on my other side and like my mom told me the other day i need to let them carry my load. all the worries I’m holding. I need to give it to them. God wants to help me. He wants me to trust him enough to carry my burdens and I’m starting to. it takes time. it doesn’t happen overnight. my whole life I’ve known God is my Heavenly Father and my dad on this earth is my earthly father and my mom is my earthly mother but I’ve never trusted anyone enough to carry all my problems or to help me through the hard times life throws at you. Until now until today really i finally trust God. How sad does that sound? but it’s hard giving everything bad you have to carry and everything hard and just ask God. Okay i can’t carry it anymore please help me. Guess what. He will He will carry every bad hard scary thing you have going on without hesitation because He loves us so so much that we can’t even imagine the love He has for us. i finally trust myself and God enough to get help and now I’m able to really have faith and I’m able to repent of short coming and when i partake of the sacrament on Sundays i remember my baptism and i am able to renew my baptismal covenants that i made. When i partake of the sacrament I’m able to have the Holy Ghost with me more. I’m able to do my calling a lot better when i use the atonement :) and the last step that we teach and that we all have to do is endure to the end. It doesn’t just end when you get baptized and receive the Holy Ghost. You have to keep going through the steps. Keep having faith. Keep repenting and remember the covenants you made when you were baptized. When you take the sacrament seek to have the holy ghost in your presents always and keep enduring to the end keep trying all you can to be more like your Father in heaven then at the end of our lives here on the earth the plan of salvation continues and your sprit goes to the spirit world where you are able to live in rest and peace. You are able to be in that state of rest and peace if you follow the steps of faith repentance baptism by emersion by someone with the priesthood authority of God receive the gift of the holy ghost and endure to the end. After the spirit world we go to judgment where you are judged for what you did on this earth. then after you are judged you are placed in a kingdom of glory which i want to go in so much detail because it’s so amazing. basically its celestial terrestrial telestrial. the celestial kingdom is like the glory of the sun. it’s amazing. You are able to live in the presents of God and your with your family for eternity and you will just be so happy. terrestrial kingdom is like the glory of the moon. the second brightest kingdom of glory where people go that are good people that lived there lives on earth with God always on top but they didn’t accept the gospel. They didn’t accept Gods church and this kingdom is still amazing. your just not in the presents of your God and you are not with your family for eternity. Last the terestral kingdon is the glory of the stars and it’s the lowest kingdom of heaven. It’s where people go that lived pretty terrible lives and don’t accept God , kill murder and all the bad things about the earth but it’s still heaven. The cool thing about all of this i was reading about this in a talk i told my mom and dad to read. It talks about how we are all put in the kingdom we are comfortable in. we choose the kingdom we are in because that’s where we are most comfortable. how amazing is that? we always have are agency. I’m so excited to be a daughter of God and I’m so happy to be called of God to serve in the Kennewick, Washington mission. To teach people all about the amazing plan we have and where we are going and why we are here. I hope I didn’t just ramble on I just want you to know this is my testimony. This is what i know this is the truth and what God wants for all of us. He wants us to accept his true gospel and we will have eternal life and be so happy in the life to come. I love each and every one of you. Members of this church and not. I Accept you in all you do. I just want you to know what I believe and this isn’t even the half of it. I wish I could be the missionary to teach you my best friends but I know that any missionary has a testimony of this church and they love you just as much as i do. i love the people i teach so much. they truly are my brothers and sisters. i hope i can hear from all of you soon. you mean the world to me and I’m grateful to all that read this and ask God for yourself if what I wrote here is true!!

Love forever and always



Your missionary Sister Steen

Sister Lacey Catherine Steen
Kennewick Washington Mission
8202 W. Quinault Ave. Suite #D
Kennewick, WA 99336

May 5, 2014

:( it’s been a pretty rough week on Wednesday we got our phone stolen and Linda our investigator took herself off date :( then Thursday we had a pretty solid phone call with a former so we set up an appointment and we visited with him and his father in law. The whole time he was bashing us and all i wanted to do was cry. The father in law was really nice though and he wants us to come back. He wants to start going to our church. We finally asked the younger guy if the spirit told you the church was true would that be enough and he laughed and said no it wouldn't so we left after that but we are going back for the father in law. it scares me but i have enough faith in God that one man can’t make me doubt my faith. it’s scary though. sometimes you catch yourself second guessing yourself and i think that’s one big reason that you have a companion. I’m so blessed i have a companion like sister Harris. she has seen me at my lowest point on my mission. we did service on Friday morning and again on Saturday morning. on Saturday after our service for a Potential investigator. I had to just sit down because i was getting a really bad stress headache. After a while i just walked away because i thought i was going to be sick but i didn't and i walked back. Karen, our investigator, told us we can be done. I felt so bad. So we left and when we got home i basically just got out of the car as fast as i could and just threw up. so my companion literately has seen me at my lowest. i was sick the rest of the day Saturday and all day Sunday. I’m feeling a little better today. I’m just sad that i haven’t been able to go teach people the Gospel :( Faith is the Power. Obedience is the Price. Love is the Motive. The Spirit is the Key, and Jesus Christ is the Reason! Even in the lowest points of your life God is there for you he will never give up on you so we should never give up on him give him your all he deserves at least that much!!

the spirit only makes you feel peace and happiness it never makes you feel sad or confused when you feel the negative things in life it is not of God. i learned that this week I’m so grateful for my companion!! im sorry not a lot has happened this week i love you all!!



Love sister steen