Return with Honor, August 14, 2013

Sister Ripplinger's Mission had to come to an end.  She honorably completed her service and was released on August 14, 2013.  We aren't sure if any young woman ever loved her mission as much as Heather did.  She set a goal and wanted to serve since she was about 12 years old.  She prayed and prayed that the Prophet would drop the required age to go, as a sister.  Very close to the time she received her mission call, the Prophet, President Monson,  announced in General Conference, that the age of the young men would drop to 18, and the age of the young women would drop to 19!  It was a miracle that stunned the Church, Heather had not been far off in her pleadings.  Heather had her 21st birthday in the MTC - she got in there as fast as they would let her, at the time.  The young sisters of the Church almost doubled the Lord's missionary force, with the lowered age requirement, and have since contributed greatly to His glorious work.

Above, you see the beautiful group of young single sisters Heather served with, at the end of her mission, with President and Sister Gilliland.  Next, you see the group that came home together the same day.  Heather was able to gain very close friendships with the adult married couple missionaries, the single sisters and the mission presidency and their wives.  Several of the associations she made in Nauvoo and in Roseville will be lifelong,close, best friends.

Sister Heather Ripplinger gave her heart and soul to every day of her mission.  She worked hard, loved everyone, lead and taught like Jesus would.

As a family, we treasured the weekly emails and letters, telling us the precious reports on the miracles that were happening every day in Nauvoo- the Beautiful, and in Roseville, California during those six months of winter.  How honored and blessed we were to have her serve the Lord.

She arrived home to the Idaho Falls airport where many loving family members greeted her.

"Well Done, Thou Good and Faithful Servant"

Sister Ripplinger's Letter, These Are The Days, August 12, 2013

My dear family and friends, This week was an answer to my prayers. I've been praying that the Lord will use me to the very end and use everything that I have left. Tuesday night, we had practice tracting for the 14 sisters that are new this year before we actually went tracting. All of the second summer sisters had different scenarios they took on as the new sisters were paired up and went around the upstairs floor of the Visitor's Center knocking on the office doors. I was with Sister Garner and we were two 80 year old sisters that had heard a lot of rumors about the Mormons. We had a lot of fun with it...haha All of the new sisters did AMAZINGLY well!!! When you serve in a Visitor's Center, you get pretty good at striking up a conversation with strangers and tying in some gospel principle with just about anything. They are all getting excited for their outbound assignments that will be coming in almost a month from now. A few friends have asked about what my assignments have been as an Assistant to the President, so I'll share some of those in this email. Since we got back to Nauvoo in April, Sister Zibetti and I were serving as the Assistants while we were training our new sisters. So we were with our own companions most of the time, except for when we were doing Assistant things on our administration day or when we needed to do something else that came up. For the last few weeks, we've been companions and with Sister Umphenour so we can train her to do the AP duties before Sister Zibetti and I leave this week. So... throughout the summer, we are in charge of working with the mission scheduler to make the schedules for all of the young sisters and rotating them through the Visitor's Center, historic sites, to Carthage on Sunday, etc. We report key indicators to the President each week from all the sisters. We meet with him each week and plan training meetings, ask needed questions from the sisters, etc. Then Sister Zibetti and I plan the weekly training meetings for the sisters, which can include anything from tracting ideas and practice to being totally consecrated in our missionary work. About once every two months, we got to do the training for the whole mission. Those trainings rotate through the mission presidency and three zone leaders (senior elders and their wives). We planned with the mission president and elders from the Iowa, Des Moines Mission for all the sisters to tract in three different cities in Iowa and worked out all the details. And so on and so forth. It has been an absolute blessing to be able to be part of all of it and to work with Sister Zibetti. We've grown together and learned really well how to rely on each other and work together. There is no way I could have made it without her. Somehow, we were able to get everything done and still fulfill our regular missionary responsibilities. On Friday, I went tracting in Quincy. Ten of us loaded into a twelve passenger van and divided to conquer the city. haha I was with Sister Holt in the first few hours and then with Sister Wood. We found a grandma with her three grand daughters out in their yard and the Spirit was extremely strong. They recognized us as servants of the Lord and asked us to pray for a few of their family members. We knelt together in their yard and offered a prayer. The clear impression that I had was that the little girls would be the ones to accept the gospel and learn from the missionaries. That was a special experience. The rest of the day was pretty much one slammed door after another. All of these experiences are for our gain!!! I'm grateful for the contrast of experiences because we appreciate the good times a lot. On Saturday, a different group and I went to Keokuk. We have so many new sisters that a few of us old geezers went two different days so that the new sisters had someone with a little experience to help. I was with Sister Searle in the early part of the day and we were out in the ghetto. The elders had said that area needed tracted and that's where we ended up. The Lord has His hand in these things, so we went forward with faith. We found a big family out in their yard and started talking with them. The dad was the most involved in the conversation. Almost immediately we had started talking about prophets in the Bible and I saw that he had a gun in his front pocket. At some point in the conversation, he told us that he had been in prison for six years. He also LOVED his family and talked about all the changes he was trying to make to be better. Tonight, we are having a BBQ with all the sisters, the Pageant Coordinating couple, and the Gillilands (President and his wife). Tomorrow morning includes packing, lunch, and then our transfer meeting with departing testimonies and everything at the mission home. Afterwards, the departing sisters and I will go with the Gillilands to the temple. We are going to do sealings...President and Sister Gilliland get to be the parents and we will be the daughters and sealed to them. :) YAY!!!!!! I am SO excited for that!!!!! Afterwards, we have dinner and departing interviews. The five of us get to stay at the mission home that night and we leave Wednesday! I am so grateful for the opportunity that I have had to serve as a full time missionary in Nauvoo and in California. I have LOVED my mission. I will forever cherish the experiences I have had. I am grateful for the people that I was blessed to be with that I will love forever. I'm grateful that I could see other people change through the Atonement, but especially that I could be changed through the Atonement. I have a gained a stronger testimony and understanding of the Atonement on my mission. I know that through the Atonement of Jesus Christ, all things will be made right. We can trust our Father in Heaven. We can trust His plan, His timing, and all that He has in store for us. I love my Heavenly Father and I love the Savior. I look forward to building the Kingdom wherever Heavenly Father sends me. I LOVE missionary work and I love this gospel!!!!! This is the work of salvation. Love, Sister Heather Ripplinger

Sister Ripplinger's Letter, Lift, Encourage, Inspire, Bless, August 6, 2013

My dear friends and family, The weather in Nauvoo is beautiful. It feels so peaceful and calm now that Pageant is over. The Spirit is so strong and I am cherishing every last second. This last week is the opportunity to teach the new sisters how to tract and we're giving them the last trainings that we have to give. We are going tracting in Quincy and Burlington this week and having a training meeting on different teaching examples, object lessons we used to teach principles, etc. There is still much work to be done. And I am soooo grateful! Bring it on! I LOVE this work!!!! One night at Pageant, my companions and I were scanning the crowd, looking for the people we were supposed to talk to. Nothing was working out. I said a little prayer in my heart, "Heavenly Father, we will just try to talk with everyone and please lead those that are prepared to us. We'll listen for the Spirit to know if we need to go somewhere specific." We tried to talk with everyone around us and ended up moving to ward the gate area. Then out of no where, these three men walked straight in front of us. They had stumbled into Nauvoo by accident and saw a sign about some show happening this evening called the Nauvoo Pageant. Sister Zibetti was caught in a conversation a few feet away from us, and Sister Umphenour and I were able to talk with these men. They wanted to know about the temple, about the Pageant, about the Prophet Joseph. We were able to teach and testify. They wanted the Pageant CD and missionaries to come to them in their different cities where they were from. I think that sometimes the Lord tests us to see what we will do when we don't seem to have direction in life. We have to make choices and do our best and then He can help us. In this case, we didn't know who to talk to, so we just tried to talk with everyone! Then when the timing was right, he led three men that were prepared for the gospel into our paths. When we come to another trial in life, we can ask ourselves, "What needs to be chipped off or burned away this time?" If we approach our challenges with the perspective that our trials will make us better, if we endure them well and learn from them, life has a lot more purpose and direction. We will improve and progress so much if we will be humble and teachable. We have to allow ourselves to be molded and shaped into what the Lord has in mind. He is perfect and He is our Father. We can trust Him and know that our trials are for our experience and gain. When we went back after Pageant to contact, I again found myself not receiving direction on where to go. I stood in my place for a moment looking at all the faces of people in the crowd. No one was standing out to me. Then the Spirit told me to look behind me. I turned around and a woman was there, with her back toward me. I immediately moved around in front of her and asked about the Pageant. She responded, "It was fine." The Spirit told me to stay there and to not be afraid of silence. So I was praying in my heart that I'd know what in the world I was supposed to say to that. I waited and then said, "You felt the Spirit tonight and received direction from God." She looked up into my eyes and burst into tears. She threw her arms around me in a hug and trembled as she embraced me. She cried, "I am a convert to the church and my family disowned me. I have been praying to know how to help them. The Lord told me to stop worrying about them and be patient. Instead, I need to do the temple work for my ancestors. But I don't even know how to begin doing that. My eyes lit up with joy! "I know how to help!!!" I was able to give her specific instructions of how to get started and what needs to happen. I invited her to attend the temple once a week and to take someone from her ward with her every time, especially looking for those that haven't been in a while. She lives about 30 minutes from a temple, so it is close! She agreed with excitement shining in her eyes. If you criticize me, the Spirit will comfort me. If you love me, the Spirit will correct me. Take your love to your loved ones and your frustrations to the Lord. Let the Savior take His role in your life and heal you. Strive to lift, encourage, inspire, and bless all around you. Sacrifice brings forth the blessings of heaven. This is the work of Salvation. This is my last email as a full time missionary. Next week when I get home, I want to write one last email to conclude my last week in the mission field. I am so grateful for this time that the Lord has granted me to labor in His vineyards in California and Nauvoo. I love this work and I fully intend to continue building the Kingdom all the days of my life. This is the work of Salvation and there are many, many waiting for the blessings of the Gospel. I will finish reading the Book of Mormon one last time this week. I love the Book of Mormon. By reading the scriptures, we come to know our Savior and Father in Heaven. We know their words and will recognize them in our lives. Any one that reads the Book of Mormon with sincerity and truly wants to know if it is the word of God, can pray about it, and know that it is precious truth. Thank you for all of your love and support throughout my mission. I am so grateful for good friends and family. You have been a blessing to me. Love, Sister Heather Ripplinger

Sister Ripplinger's Letter, The Priesthood of God, July 30, 2013

My dear friends and family, This morning, my companions and I were driving back from grocery shopping in Keokuk and I was driving in the pouring rain. The water was running over the road and the rain was pounding on the windshield. I love the rainstorms here. I feel the Lord is letting the blessings pour down, as well. I feel like we're in a rainstorm of blessings-the cup runneth over and there is not enough room to receive them. The Spirit has been strong and miracles are happening. Last summer, I met this precious family that I immediately felt close to and loved. I first met them on Pageant grounds one night, then saw them at different locations in Nauvoo about five times after that. I was able to bear testimony to their young family and they taught me through their examples. They move around a lot for the dad's work and have learned how to make friends quickly and just love with opens heart. Last week, I was looking through my contact information of people I've met on my mission and saw their family name. The Spirit reminded me who they were. A week later, I saw them walk into the Carthage Jail Visitor's Center. Immediately, we all recognized each other. It was a great reunion. We had a really neat spiritual experience together that Sunday afternoon and they also told me that their 12 year old twin boys were going to receive the Aaronic Priesthood this week while they're in Nauvoo. They invited my companions and I to be there. Wednesday night, we went to the Stake Center where the Pageant Cast has their pre-show meeting together. Everyone had just finished and were getting ready to leave for their district meetings. We were able to join their circle as they talked about the Priesthood of God. I was able to bear my testimony of the Priesthood. The Priesthood is something that has strengthened my testimony deeply and significantly of the Gospel. I was grateful for the opportunity to testify of it. Then we went into the Relief Society room, with their grandparents, their Bishop (who traveled to Nauvoo to be there as well), and other cast members they were close to. The Spirit was STRONG in that room. It was a sacred to experience to be there as these two young men were ordained as deacons by their father. Although they are twins, their blessings were very different and I could feel that they were inspired. I felt so grateful that they invited us to be there. There were a lot more people in that room than we could see with our eyes. Later that night, on Pageant grounds the father came and thanked me for helping their family feel like they have a true friend- that sometimes they feel like the forgotten family because they move around so much and it meant a lot that we came to their special family event. They will never understand how grateful I was that they invited us to come. Now we are family and friends. We had our missionary meeting in the Nauvoo Groves before going out to contact on Pageant Grounds every night. One particular evening, I gave the thought and talked about miracles happening. We read from the Book of Mormon about how Heavenly Father is a God of miracles and that miracles have not ceased. I believe that with all my heart. I believe in the power of heaven. Some missionaries shared miracles that have happened recently in their different areas from the Des Moines, Iowa Mission and the Nauvoo sisters. I felt the Spirit and knew that miracles would happen again that night. We went back to the information booth where my companions and I were assigned for the night and immediately, an older woman walks toward us. She asks me what we have available and I told her about the Pageant CD that is available. She seemed excited about it and I started asking her about her life. She started filling out the referral card and I saw she was from Burlington. It so happened that the elders serving in Burlington were standing right next to us and they were able to schedule a meeting with her and make friends right then and there. The Lord is in the details of His work. Sister Umphenour, Sister Zibetti, and I made the extra effort to attend a few of the vignettes that the Pageant Cast does during the week. The first one we went to was Letters of Joseph and Emma. It was right across from the Mansion House and was magical to see (the actors) Joseph and Emma walking arm in arm with the Mansion House behind them. The performance is them reading out loud the letters they wrote to each other. It was wonderful. The next vignette was "Go Ye Into The World". Imagine Brigham Young, John Taylor, Heber C. Kimball, Parley P. Pratt, and Wilford Woodruff all in the Seventies Hall. Each of them told their stories about serving missions in England and the sacrifices they made. Oh my goodness, it was so powerful. I have never seen Sister Umphenour cry, but this thing was so good that even the Umphenator was in tears. Isn't that amazing!? We had several young women come from Iowa to serve with us as missionaries for the day. They were doing a special program "Called to Serve", where they are set apart for the weekend as missionaries. I had a few different sisters with me and it was fun to see these 16 and 17 year old young women open their mouths and talk with people about the Gospel. Some of them seemed extremely uncomfortable talking with strangers about the Gospel, but it was fun to see them open up their hearts to God's children and bear testimony. I've been thinking and praying a lot about what Heavenly Father wants me to do when I get back to BYU. I feel like there are some young women in the ward where I will be living that have been thinking about missions, but are nervous to go for different reasons. I'm going home to continue building the Kingdom and I need to find those young women and help them gain a desire to fulfill a mission for their Father in Heaven. I know there are many things to yet complete before I come home and I know that Heavenly Father is preparing more for when I get back. The Spirit has really been working on me and preparing me. For that I am grateful. The Ripplinger family is in Nauvoo at last!!!! My family arrived yesterday and it has been a wonderful experience to have them here. We went to the temple together this morning and it was an experience that I will never forget. My mom, my dad, my dear Sister Umphenour, and sweet Sister Zibetti gathered together in the Celestial room at the end of the session and I cherish those moments. We were able to share special experiences and soak in the Spirit. The veil is thin. I thought about Nikole, Elizabeth, and Carl who were waiting to perform baptisms and confirmations soon and how their testimonies have grown. My young family read the Book of Mormon in 85 days. I thought of my brother, Derek, on his mission and the experiences that he is having. He is experiencing that challenges and the blessings-the experiences that bring us closer to the Savior. The Lord is merciful and kind and He loves us. I know that in the eternities, my mission will be sacred to me, and the precious time the Lord has granted me with my family. I'm grateful to be a missionary. I love this gospel and I know that this is the Lord's work. This is the work of salvation. Sister Heather Ripplinger

Sister Ripplinger's Letter, Reflections of a Transfer, July 16, 2013

My dear friends and family,

This week was amazing! One of my precious families from California came to Nauvoo this week and it was a huge blessing to see them. When I saw them again, it was like we were never apart. It makes me have eternal perspective and know that these relationships will last through the eternities and that we are all part of a heavenly family. I have met and come to love so many people on my mission and I'm grateful for the opportunity that I have had to know so many wonderful people. 

David Warner, the Managing Director of the Priesthood Department from Church Headquarters has been here for the first week of Pageant and we had the opportunity of hearing him speak at the Cast Meeting before Pageant started on the first night. He said, "On the other side of the veil, they are rejoicing. Because we are here, they will be here." We had the privilege of watching Pageant on Wednesday night and I LOVED it. The Spirit is so strong and you can feel others there with you. One of my favorite parts is at the very beginning when the Bagpipe Band is playing "Praise to the Man" and they march through the crowd up to the stage with a huge group of pioneers following them along. It is powerful. 

This week, Sister Newell and I had the opportunity to teach someone about the Atonement on mormon.org chat. She was in England and was struggling to forgive herself. We testified of the Savior's ability to heal us in every way-that it is not possible for us to sink lower that Christ's infinite Atonement can shine. It is incredible to me that the gospel can be spread through the Lord's appointed means to all the world. This transfer, alone, Sister Newell and I have taught people from 9 different countries and all over the United States. 

I ­­have absolutely loved Sister Newell. She is a huge blessing in my life and I will forever cherish her as a dear friend. She is fiercely loyal, supportive, motivated, hardworking, diligent, happy, full of energy, always has a kind compliment for everyone, and has a strong desire to learn. I’ve never met someone that can learn so much so quickly.


As I reflect back on this transfer that we’ve had together, I just kind of choke up because my heart is so full of gratitude. This transfer has truly felt SACRED. The first day we were together, we set a goal for referrals and the goal seemed very ambitious-had never been done before and would really push us. We worked diligently all transfer and now, at the end, we realized that we actually DOUBLED our goal that we set. I could hardly believe it myself, but the Lord provided us so many opportunities to testify of the Savior and to help further His work. During our dinner and lunch breaks, we would go into the Referral Center and do Mormon.org chat.


We would dig into our companionship study time and practice teaching, study Preach My Gospel, and just go, go, go. We would bike up the huge temple hill at lightning speed, muscles flaming on fire and all, to make it home on time and still make the very most of the time we have teaching the gospel. We would wake up on time every day and go running. We had absolutely no problems and the Spirit was completely unrestrained in our companionship. We had so much FUN. I will always love Sister Newell. She has a strong heart and deep desire to share the Gospel and I feel like I really gave everything I had. She helped me reach my potential because of who she is.


I've also been thinking about what President Gilliland has taught me throughout my mission. He taught me what it means to love the scriptures and use them in teaching. He knows the scriptures extremely well and it motivated me to learn how to use them. He taught me so much about receiving revelation and recognizing the Lord's will. He taught me how to have power in prayer and to speak with Heavenly Father. The conclusion that I came to is that he taught me how to be a good missionary. Throughout my mission, the Spirit has brought things to my mind that President Gilliland said in a training meeting or in an informal teaching situation. I know that serving around President was divine design and he has taught me lessons that will stay with me through the eternities and has changed me. He helped push me to be better, to try harder, and to expect more.


Yesterday, we met these Jamaican ladies that were recent converts to the Church. They were having a joyful celebration as they saw hundreds of missionaries in Nauvoo. They were running from one companionship to the next, pleading to take a picture with them. One woman exclaimed, "I have never seen so many missionaries in all my life! This is a heaven on earth!!!!!!!" As I watched them throughout the day at different times, I just reflected on that statement. It is such a blessing to be surrounded by so many good people and people that are set apart with authority to represent the Lord. I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY.


We get three new sisters tomorrow and I'm excited to meet them! I've been thinking about them a lot the last few weeks. Previously, they were scheduled to come in August. But the Lord had them come in July instead. I think there are many reasons for that. And I think that these sisters will be very strong and powerful missionaries. Transfers happen Thursday and I look forward to seeing what happens.


This is the WORK OF SALVATION!!!!!!!


Love,
Sister Heather Ripplinger

Sister Ripplinger's Letter, This Week's Epistle, July 2, 2013

My dear friends and family, I've had some different questions asked, so I will try to include more information in this email to answer those. So many things happen around here!!! I LOVE IT! Transfers would have happened this, HOWEVER.... we got word that we are getting three more new sisters in the middle of JULY!!!! We weren't expecting them until the middle of August when some of us go home, but they are now coming earlier! So this transfer was extended by two weeks (making it an eight week transfer), so that we have a new transfer when they get here. I was so excited to know that I had a few more weeks with Sister Newell!!!!!! We have been making plans to have three more sisters. The Lord is packing in the missionaries! I absolutely LOVE it! The new sisters will come in right during Pageant season, so they will see Nauvoo at its finest. I love Nauvoo because there are literally hundreds of missionaries in a few square miles in Nauvoo and we're all in the midst of a temple. This summer, I have been really focused on strengthening the other missionaries and fulfilling my responsibilities with Sister Zibetti in doing all the scheduling, planning trainings, exchanges etc. However, Sister Newell and I are together every day but Wednesday (which is our administration day) or on exchanges and we get to do the regular missionary work that we are called to do in Nauvoo. We get to serve in the Visitor's Center, as well as the historic sites, and also in the Referral Center and on Mormon.org chat. The recent missionary broadcast talked about using the internet to share the gospel and we do a lot of that in Nauvoo already. We have time every day to be on mormon.org chat. So someone that is not familiar with the church comes onto mormon.org and can "chat" with missionaries. They often are more comfortable being taught online than having missionaries in their home at first. So we get to answer basic questions and get them started with the lessons until we can have their local missionaries come. Sometimes we are able to answer their questions and help them feel the Spirit in the first conversation and they are willing to give us their contact info so we can send a referral to the local missionaries. Sometimes we commit them to baptism and teach them for a little while until they are ready. This week online we taught someone from Mexico, Hungary, New Jersey, Trinidad and Tobago, Scotland, England, and Texas. I'll tell you quickly about the woman from Mexico. Her father passed away last Thursday and she has felt that he is somehow still around. She tried to tell her friends about the experiences, but no one believed her because he had died and couldn't believe that his spirit could still exist. She got online and googled "How long does it take a soul to enter heaven"? A few options came up and a mormon.org ad came along that talks about what happens after we die and led her to mormon.org. She came onto chat and we taught her from Alma 40. She described how she felt so peaceful and knew that what we were saying was true. She wanted to know more and we taught her a little more and invited her to have local missionaries come. She anxiously accepted, then asked us a question. It was, "I feel that my father is concerned for the welfare of his soul. What can I do for him?" Sister Newell and I smiled at each other and we just very basically answered her question and said that the missionaries will talk about God's plan for His children and she will learn more about what she can do for her father. She asked if it would be faster to have missionaries bring her a Book of Mormon or if she should order one online. :) It was so sweet and she was SO excited to learn more. She felt the Spirit and it was an absolutely incredible experience for us. I love testifying of the Plan of Salvation. Sister Newell and I have been working away at our "rainbow of referrals" this transfer. I mentioned a while ago that we cut out colored dots and write the referral names and where they're from and then we're making a rainbow over our window in our bedroom with them. We set a really high goal for the transfer and have been working away diligently at it. We had three days left in June and were behind. I know that Sister Newell has been praying faithfully that we could reach that goal and I could feel that the Lord was going to provide a way to do it. A few days ago, we got seventeen referrals in one day. We have already met our goal, and the transfer was extended two more weeks, so we can keep on working away. Last night, I was going through my notes I made a few months ago from President Weston about how to be a good trainer. One point was that when you are a trainer, you are entitled to revelation and you should expect to see miracles with the new missionary. You can pray for experiences that will teach them how to be a strong missionary. I know that Sister Newell has a lot of faith because we've been seeing miracle, after miracle, after miracle. I still remember that first day when we were companions and we went out in the garden and she said she wanted so badly to receive a referral. I asked her if she had faith, she gulped a deep gulp, and said YES. She got one about an hour later and she got 17 in one day this week. We've been focusing a lot of our companion studies on discernment and listening to the Spirit. Also on being bold and loving and having faith. It's been amazing to see how many opportunities the Lord provides us to have together in the VC or on chat. She soaks up everything and learns. She has grown soooo much and she's already a strong, strong missionary. One of my favorite memories this week was on Thursday, June 27th. All of the sisters drove out to Carthage Jail for the Commemoration of the Martyrdom of Joseph Smith. The meeting was absolutely incredible and the Spirit was strong. President Gilliland spoke and did a wonderful job. (I continue to observe him and learn a lot). Afterwards, all the sisters and the Gillilands stayed at the jail and had a testimony meeting in the martyrdom room. On the way home, we were driving into that beautiful sunset, with fireflies glittering the fields around us. We were singing missionary songs all the way, and I was just full of pure joy as I looked in the rear view mirror at my precious sisters that I love so much and my dear companion beside me. I feel so incredibly blessed to be a missionary in Nauvoo. This is the Lord's work and I absolutely love it. I've been praying that He'll prepare more and more work for me to do when I get home and that He'll pack my last six weeks with prepared people and spiritual experiences. He has taught me how to find people for missionaries to teach and for the rest of my life, I intend to continue being a "finder" everywhere I go and I want to build the Kingdom. Elder Holland gave a talk about missionaries working so hard that they have to go home on a stretcher.... I've got six weeks and I'm going to give it everything I've got. I have two paper back copies of the Book of Mormon that I'm working on right now. I am reading the Book of Mormon with my family and will finish it in July, marking references to ministering angels and prayer. With all the sisters, we are reading it marking references to strengthening power from the Lord and will finish it in the middle of August. I'm also trying to finish Doctrine and Covenants this summer and the book "Our Heritage", which is a lot about church history. Our companionship study time is always very inspiring and led by the Spirit and then we're just trying to work as hard as we can when we aren't studying. At this point, I'm completely relying on the Atonement. Without Christ we are nothing. With Him, we can do anything that God commands us to do. Love, Sister Heather Ripplinger

Sister Ripplinger's Letter, Nauvoo Pageant, July 9, 2013

My dear friends and family,

The Nauvoo Pageant begins TONIGHT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! All of the sisters and I are really, really excited and Nauvoo is buzzing with excitement. It is amazing to think about how much happens to prepare for Pageant. The members of the Church prepare for it all year and then it happens ONE month. It is obviously really important because the Lord puts so much effort into it. The other night, we were driving home with the windows rolled down and I could see the cast on the stage across the field, with bright lights shining on them. I could see them through the grove of trees and their bodies were illuminated in the light. As I looked at them, I felt the Spirit overcome me and I it looked like hundreds of angels were around the stage and the cast members were glowing like angels as they performed.  The Lord has many wise purposes for the Nauvoo Pageant and I am so looking forward to seeing the miracles that are ahead. This is the work of salvation and it is moving forward.

This week, I have just been so grateful for the opportunity that I have to be in Nauvoo, the City of Joseph. We drive past the beautiful Nauvoo Temple every day and we are in the midst of a House of the Lord all day long. There are so many opportunities to testify of Christ here and so many opportunities to teach the Gospel and help people recognize the Spirit for the first time. There are literally hundreds of missionaries in a few square miles, all working to build the Kingdom of God. There are sooooo many blessings and I am eternally grateful for them.

Next week, we get three new sisters in our mission and we are so excited to have them coming!

A lot of special experiences happened this week, but I probably shouldn't write about them in my email. But I will testify that miracles happen. Significant miracles. Someone that has been dealing with severe stomach pain for the last month, was given a Priesthood blessing that promised they would be healed, and this morning, I got a note from that person that said their stomach didn't hurt anymore. Another miracle is that a family is coming to Nauvoo from California that I have been praying for since I left and they get to watch Pageant. The Spirit is strong on Pageant grounds and I know that more miracles will happen. My testimony is growing stronger every day. I have been striving to make the very most of my study time and I can feel more power. I'm trying to teach Sister Newell and I dive into our companion studies and the time flies by, but we cover a lot of material and are taught by the Spirit. I just love being a missionary! We are off to the temple this morning! I love NAUVOO!!!!!!!

Love,
Sister Heather Ripplinger

Sister Ripplinger's Letter, Answered Prayers, June 25, 2013

My dear family and friends, This week, Sister Zibetti and I started working on the schedule during Pageant time and it was absolutely incredible to feel the Heavenly help we received. There are so many details and specific ways that things have to work out and there is no way under the heavens that we could have done it on our own. But somehow, it all came together very quickly and things worked out. I am so grateful to know that we aren't in this alone. Sister Newell is my ever faithful companion and I love her to pieces. She is growing spiritually so much and it is amazing to see how the Spirit teaches us all. She is really learning how to discern needs and to follow the Spirit. It's exciting to see her growing. :) If I had to describe her in one word, I would use LOYAL. She is such a faithful and loyal friend and I absolutely love her. I'm grateful that I have her right now. :) I had a lot of neat learning experiences this week. I'll just share a couple really quickly. Last week, I went into the women's restroom to find a young MAN standing in front of the mirrors. haha I spun around in a split second and went back out in a blink. Sister Newell saw the surprised look on my face and laughed. We then started saying how funny it was that a man was in the women's restroom. I totally judged the young man. A few minutes later, I realize that this young man had a severe handicap and his sweet 18 year old sister was taking care of him. Their parents went to the temple and the rest of their cousins ditched them, even though they were supposed to stay together. This young woman took care of her brother who had the maturity level of a 5 year old, but was in a 15 year old body. They came out of the rest room and sat on one of the couches in the VC. I felt like I needed to talk with them and it was very humbling. She was one of the most patient and Christ-like 18 years I have ever met. I learned a lot from that experience. I met another young woman that was absolutely incredible. She also had a severe handicap all through her life and she had accepted the fact that she would never get married in this life. 10 years ago, she was endowed and made that day her "anniversary". Since that day, she attended the temple on her anniversary each year and had a celebration. She has kept her covenants faithfully and went through life with faith. Then a man came into her life that could see passed her mortal challenges and fell in love with her. They were married on her "anniversary". She told us her story after recently being married in the Nauvoo Temple. It was so inspiring!!!! Her prayers were answered. I had a neat opportunity to serve with one of the senior single sisters that lost her husband years ago. She has served three missions since then and she intends to keep serving missions until she dies or can't go anymore. She also said that once her grandchildren are old enough to serve, she may fund their missions instead when she can't go anymore. I just sat there in awe and listened to her tell her story. There are so many strong people in the world. I had the opportunity to speak in Sacrament meeting this week and I really enjoyed it. A few weeks ago, President Gilliland told me about how he and Sister Gilliland would be prayerful in preparing when they were asked to speak in Stake Conferences or other meetings, but wouldn't write out a complete outline to read their talk from. I can still see his eyes sparkling a few weeks ago when he invited me to give my talk without notes and to just follow the Spirit. I did it!!!! :) At least the part of going without notes... :) My talk was centered around the promise in Preach My Gospel "As your understanding of the Atonement of Jesus Christ grows, your desire to share the Gospel will increase." During my mission, I have truly come to love the Atonement. I am gaining a stronger and deeper understanding of the Atonement. I am so grateful for the enabling power of the Atonement. We really can overcome any weakness and make those things strong through Christ. We can be healed. We can forgive. We can change. Sunday night, President Gilliland talked about temple symbolism and taught me a lot. I had been planning on asking him to teach me more about the temple before I went home, and he answered it in a fireside at his house. Prayers are answered. I am so grateful to be a missionary!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I LOVE THE GOSPEL. Love, Sister Ripplinger

Sister Ripplinger's Letter, Do What is Right, June 18, 2013

My dear family and friends,

The first picture is of David at his baptism!!!!! SO EXCITING!!!!

Sister Newell is absolutely WONDERFUL. I LOVE Sister Newell. We frequently ride bikes to our different shifts and find a lot of joy in that. haha We are figuring out which skirts work well with biking and which ones don't do so well. I have this one skirt that has a bunch of layers and is white. It totally got stuck in the wheels and Sister Newell had to help me get loose. hahaha She's a champ and we have so much fun together, while working hard to reach our goals.

Usually, I sit down with my planner and report all of the things that happened during the week...but this morning, we went to the temple and I totally forgot my planner. Without that planner, I am pretty much useless. So I am just going to share a few thoughts about things that I've been working on and experiencing!

One neat miracle that happened last night while we were in the Referral Center... I had one more referral card to call on and was kind of hesitant to call. But I dialed the number and spoke with the dad of the family. We talked for just a few minutes and he accepted to have missionaries come to their home and teach them!!!! I said something different than I have ever said before (the Spirit directed it) and he was willing to be taught! It is absolutely amazing how the Lord knows our hearts and what we need to hear.

That is something that I want to emphasize in this email. Heavenly Father knows our hearts perfectly. He knows what we need, what we want, and what is best for us in the eternal vision of our existence. He knows where we need to grow and how to help us progress. He hears our prayers and is answering them. I have been keeping a journal of what I pray for and then keeping record of when and how the prayers are answered. It is absolutely amazing to watch the pattern.  My testimony is growing stronger and stronger of prayer. When we understand our relationship with Heavenly Father, prayer becomes instinctive.

On Sunday, we had the opportunity to serve in Carthage Jail and Sister Newell and I got to take a nap while the other sisters drove. As I was kicking back my seat to take a nap, Elder Holland's voice came on and one phrase stood out to me that I wrote down before I went unconscious. "Resist all temptation." I thought it was interesting how we can't always REMOVE temptations, but we can RESIST them. I've been focusing on that quote this week. haha It's amazing how the Lord allows us to be tested and we can stand strong. When we really put up a fight and do our very best, miracles happen. Sister Newell and I have had a lot of incredible miracles lately because of the enabling power of the Atonement.

I absolutely LOVE being a missionary. These are days that I will treasure and cherish for the rest of eternity. The opportunities and experiences are so unique and precious. I LOVE serving the Lord. Always turn to the Savior and trust Him. Do what is right because it is the right thing to do.

Love,
Sister Heather Ripplinger

Sister Ripplinger's Letter, Force for God, June 11, 2013

My dear friends and family, The Lord knows our hearts. That continually is impressed in me and I'm just beginning to understand. He knows what we are capable of and He knows what we need. He sends tender mercies to us and gives us opportunities to become stronger. I am so grateful that I have the opportunity to be a missionary in Nauvoo. My testimony is growing deeper and deeper and I know that Nauvoo is an important part of my eternal progression. It is amazing how people can influence us and they may never know. This week, a big group of young people that had just graduated from high school came from Utah. There were four young men walking around in their white shirts and ties that looked just like beaming missionaries. President Call and I were talking with them and just being in their presence made me so full of joy and hope. These 18 year old young men were just radiating excitement and the joy of the Gospel. They had just graduated from high school and all four of them had their mission calls. One of them just really stood out to me. He was confident, happy, and full of light. There aren't a lot of people in the world that radiate light like that, but he did. He was a powerful example to me and reminded me to keep my vision high and to expect myself to arise and be a light and a force for good. I was thinking this week about what it is that fills us with that "light". What is it that makes someone radiate and glow with the Spirit? I think that the more we feel the Spirit, the more we radiate light. The more pure we are, the more we radiate light. How do we be purified? I think one of the most important ways to become purified is to humble ourselves and recognize that we can be better and then BECOME better. We continually repent and seek to apply the Atonement. We let Christ into our lives and we give up who we used to be, we give up our mistakes and our past. We have hope for a better future and we are willing to do anything that God asks of us. We read and ponder the scriptures frequently, pray in a way that He can communicate with us, and attend the temple regularly. When we feel the Spirit, we can be purified. We just need to feel the Spirit in our lives. Someone that can radiate that light is a powerful force for God. BYU's Folk Dance Team has been in Nauvoo and they are also a powerful force for God. They are all young people that are living a standard of excellence. They use their talents to bless others and they are incredible. We went to a fireside they did for the missionaries and community and it was amazing. It's just good to see so many strong college age students standing in front of you, testifying of the Savior and of joy. I sure do love Brigham Young University. :) So many wonderful things happen throughout the week. This week has included a lot of personal revelation. I'm excited to see what the Lord has in store. Right now is the dead sprint through the finish of my mission and it's Pageant time. We are already making plans for the month of July and Pageant cast arrives soon. I'm SOOOOOO excited for the Spirit that they bring and the miracles that lie ahead. My family will be able to experience the miracle of Nauvoo soon and again, I recognize the tender mercies of the Lord. I continue to LOVE Sister Newell. She is a good, hard worker and she's fun. That's just a perfect combination for me. We are setting ambitious goals through the Spirit and we are able to reach them with the direction of the Lord. He has so many people prepared for the Gospel. I'm soooooo grateful that I get this time with Sister Newell. This is the work of Salvation!!!! Love, Sister Heather Ripplinger

Sister Ripplinger's Weekly Letter, Rainbow of Miracles, June 4, 2013

Subject: Rainbow of Miracles
From: heather.ripplinger@myldsmail.net
To: nikkiripplinger@outlook.com

My dear friends and family,

I am absolutely LOVING Sister Newell. She is so happy, easy going, excited to learn, fun, and hard working. She really wants to push herself as hard as she can and do the Lord's work. I'm striving to teach by example. I've been praying for opportunities to teach the Gospel everywhere we go and the Lord is placing people in our paths. It is actually incredibly miraculous. We set some pretty ambitious goals for this transfer and we are measuring our progress in some fun ways. We took some colored paper and cut polka dots to place on the wall. On those dots, we write down the names of people that we talk with that end up wanting missionaries to come to their home and teach them (self-referrals), the date, and where we found them. 

With those dots, we are making a rainbow over our window in our bedroom. Every person on our wall was found in a different "method of finding". One was from Nauvoo on the Road in Keokuk, Iowa, where about 8 missionaries travel to a different city to kind of advertise Nauvoo and invite people to come. Another was from our tornado clean-up service that we did in Hannibal, Missouri. Another was from Mormon.org Chat online who was from Pennsylvania. Another was while we were serving at the Carthage Jail Visitor's Center. And another was in the Nauvoo Visitor's Center, etc. 

The Lord has so much work for us to do and I love it. We set transfer goals, weekly goals, and daily goals. When we are planning for the week, we break it down day by day. Yesterday, we were trying really hard to reach the high goals that the Spirit prompted us to reach. At about 7:50 pm, we had met all of our goals, except for one. We needed to leave at 8:00 for something scheduled and were just wrapping up a conversation on mormon.org chat. The guy had come on with some kind of interesting questions and at that point in the day, we were tired and worn out. 

The Spirit told me that we needed to ask if he would like for missionaries to visit him at his home, but I also had the second thought of doubt that he would probably say no. But we wanted to be obedient and we asked. He immediately said that he would and gave us all of his contact information!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We both looked at each other, somewhat shocked, and then said a prayer of gratitude together. Our goals were extremely high for that day and the Lord gave us the strength and the faith to reach them. He provided the way. It is so humbling to be a part of the Lord's work. Miracles happen all the time. There are difficult challenges along the way, but Sister Newell and I can rely on the Lord and it's amazing what happens.

Last Wednesday, we traveled to Hannibal with most of the young sisters and then several senior missionaries. We arrived at the church building and received directions from a member of the Stake Presidency. We divided up into three different groups and then went out for the day. That poor town had so many trees on the ground, in yards and along the streets. The first house we went to, had one big branch in the front yard that had fallen from the massive tree. We were all excited about it and got to work. The Spirit kept telling me that we needed to talk to the people and try to find new investigators for the missionaries in that area. 

We went and talked to a few kids fishing along the pond and the man at the home we were at. We all kind of left in a hurry to get to the next site and the Spirit just kept working on me that I need to be paying attention to people around the areas. The next home we came to, there was one branch dangling way up in the tree that we couldn't do anything about. I glanced over and there was a girl working on the steps of the house next door. We went over to ask if they could use some help. She didn't live there, but went in to ask the woman that did. Barbara came out and said that there was actually quite a bit of damage between her house and her neighbor's. 

The neighbor was a woman named Nancy that had recently lost her husband. As we walked around to see what we could do, there was a huge tree that had fallen right between their two homes. As we ventured down more, we saw that several huge trees had fallen in the back yard. Although we were unable to assist the people living in the home that had actually asked for us to come, the Lord knew how to get us to that neighborhood. We worked hard in that yard for a few hours and made friends with those two women. Before we left, we asked if we could sing them a song and share a message. We all sang "I Am A Child of God" and then the senior missionaries sang a song from one of their performances "Welcome to Nauvoo". Those missionaries looked so dang cute as they did the actions and sang that happy song. We ended with a prayer and asked if she would like to have missionaries come back and share a message about God's love for His children, and Nancy said YES. She was so sweet and humble. I checked my online area book and it looks like the elders have contacted her and are teaching her. I know that so many miracles are happening in missionary work because of the natural disasters. I saw an article on lds.org about missionaries serving in Kansas and I hear about all the opportunities around the world that missionaries have to help. The Lord is hastening His work and providing great opportunities for His servants.

We have been teaching people from Scotland and England, working toward getting their local missionaries there. Technology is a way for people to search for the truth in a non-threatening way. Althougt they may not allow missionaries in their home at first, those faithful missionaries leave a mormon.org card and the individuals look up the site later. We have had so many people come on asking questions about the faith that feel the Spirit and then allow missionaries to come. 

It is so neat to be part of the Lord's work in so many different ways. I love being a missionary in Nauvoo. At times, I miss my California family, but I trust that they are in the Lord's hands and will be taken care of. It's interesting where life takes us. It's miraculous. We really can trust the Lord. He will strengthen us in our challenges and carry us when we couldn't make it on our own. I felt especially close to the Savior this week. We really do come to know God through our trials and if we endure well, the blessings will pour down. The enabling power of the Atonement is real. Heavenly Father hears our prayers. 

One specific example of that is a few weeks ago, my companion and I had dinner with a senior couple that I absolutely adore. They were talking about when President Gilliland taught about prayer some time during the winter. I was pondering how powerful his prayers are. When that man prays, you know that he is talking with God. I was praying that we would have an opportunity to learn about prayer from President and then President Gilliland, himself, told Sister Zibetti and I that he felt prompted that he should teach all of the young sisters in our weekly training meeting how to pray and bear testimony with power and understanding. 

I was so excited to hear from him and I soaked up the training meeting this week. President inspires me in so many ways and he has deeply impacted me for the rest of my life. He leads by example. If I had to describe him in one sentence, I would say that he knows how to receive revelation. I am forever grateful for the wonderful lessons I am learning on my mission. On that same topic, I am so grateful for my parents and all those that prepared the path before me. My parents taught me how to use the language of prayer from the day I was sent into their arms. They taught me that my prayers were heard and would be answered in the Lord's ways. They taught me to rely on the Lord. I'm so grateful for the privilege and opportunity I have had to hear people pray for the first time and to see them gain testimonies of prayer. I am so grateful for the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I love this work so deeply. I love the Lord and I love Nauvoo!!!

Everyone have a wonderful week and I encourage you all to think about what you can do to strengthen your own testimony. If you ask in prayer, the Spirit will inspire you in what you can do. Sacrifice brings forth the blessings of heaven.

Love,

Sister Heather Ripplinger

Family Sealed in Nauvoo

Tree After Storm

We wear volunteer yellow

Sister Ripplinger's Weekly Letter, Nauvoo Storms, May 21, 2013

Dear friends and family,

This is going to be an extremely short email because I had to register for my BYU classes in the fall. It is all taken care of and I'm good to go! It was a miracle because I missed the day that classes opened for me to register, but all the classes that I needed had ONE seat open still that I could get into. The Lord is looking out for me and providing the way. I'm SO GRATEFUL. Now I can dive back into Nauvoo and finish my mission hard.

This week was full of excitement with the storms. Nauvoo is protected from the tornadoes and serious storms. We had a lot of heavy rain and some branches on trees came down, but nothing too serious.

I have really been focusing on making my heart pure and completely sanctified. This week, I have felt the Spirit more than ever and received many distinct and clear impressions. There have been a few times when I knelt down to pray and could feel the Spirit in such a way that I had to open my eyes a few times to see around me because I felt the Spirit so strongly. I know that Heavenly Father's promise to surround us with angels is real and that we are truly protected and directed by heavenly help. I am striving to train myself to "see the unseen" and to recognize the most quiet promptings.

This week, we had the privledge to serve in Lands and Records and OH MY GOODNESS. It was incredible. I found that I had several relatives that lived in Nauvoo, were actually endowed in the original temple, and I found a TON of information about their lives. I have also been researching and studying the life of Emma Smith. The Lord is teaching me a lot and my vision is lifting higher. While in Lands and Records, we were researching individuals and going through several books. I could feel the Spirit in there and it made me soooo excited for all of the modern technology.

Next week I will have to update more on the missionary work of people who have come to Nauvoo. It is so exciting and I feel like some neat things are going to happen this summer. The shows start this week and I'm soooo excited!!!!!

I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY. I absolutely LOVE it.

I hope everyone has a wonderful week! Remember what really matters most! =)

Love,

Sister Heather Ripplinger

Sister Ripplinger's Weekly Letter, Baptisms in England, May 14, 2013

Sent: Tuesday, May 14, 2013 12:18 PM
Subject: Baptism in England

Dear friends and family,

I am reminded that before really powerful spiritual experiences or something important happens, we usually have some opposition and Satan puts up a fight to hinder the work as much as he can. But the good news, is that the truth of God will go forth boldly, nobly, and independent until it has covered the whole earth. This week, I was sick and my body took a few days to get its act together. On Saturday, I didn't feel like I could be on the main floor of the Visitor's Center all day, but Sister Mills and I went up into the Referral Center and were on Mormon.org chat. We had a few funny experiences and then a young lady named Jenny  from the United Kingdom came on. The beginning of the conversation was Jenny telling us that her parents were never religious, but she wants to believe in something-that she NEEDS to believe in something. She expressed how she needs motivation and a better vision of her future. I felt really strongly that we needed to teach her about prayer. She had not prayed before and we were able to very simply teach her how to speak to her Father in Heaven. She prayed outloud and then expressed that she has never felt so overcome with emotion. She then said, "I didn't know that I could come to believe so quickly." The Spirit was strong . We went on to teach her about some basic gospel doctrines. She said that she feels this strong desire to do charity work or to do something good. We talked about how the Spirit prompts us to do good things and that through the Spirit, God helps us know what we should do. Then that strong impression came over me to invite her to be baptized. A flood of previous experiences came pouring into my mind and I remembered sitting in the chapel in California with Steve when we invited him to be baptized, etc. We invited her to be baptized on June 8th and she accepted. We got the elders in her area in contact with her that day and got her the address to her local church building. She attended church yesterday and is on her way to baptism. It is absolutely INCREDIBLE that technology is helping the work of the Lord move forward in the ways that it does. 

The very next day, we were serving in Carthage Jail. We were busy taking tours all day and it is interesting how timing works out. I was with Sister Garner and we ended up talking with a sweet couple that has traveled around the world in the military. They have lived in Japan, Europe, all over the United States, etc. They "somehow" just ended up with a road trip that led them to Carthage Jail and they had never even heard of Nauvoo. They walked in, we smiled and greeted them, and asked if they had come from Nauvoo. They gave us these cute little smiles and a funny face and asked, "What is Na-voo?" That gave away their position pretty quickly...haha We took them to the large picture on the wall of the First Vision and taught the whole Restoration lesson right there. The Spirit was there and the feeling was very strong. These people were very pure and very prepared for the truth. As we took them on the tour of the jail, we didn't even take the regular tour with the historical information. We taught the Gospel and they asked question after question, with deep interest and sincerity. It was soooooo cool!!!!!! In the Martyrdom room, the Spirit was especially strong. After we went through the jail, we went outside and stood under the trees for quite a while. We read from the Book of Mormon together and they loved it. We were able to get their contact information and they said that they really wanted to read more from the Book of Mormon. As they were getting ready to leave, the man looked me straight in the eyes with this look of .....desperation to stay longer or something. I could tell that he did not want to leave. He looked at me and said, "You make sure you contact us, ok?" I felt something special with that couple. I don't even know how to describe it. I have no doubt in my mind that they will accept the gospel very soon and be faithful members, but they were really special. I don't know what the Lord has in store for them, but they still stand out in my mind very strongly. 

I am also so very grateful for people that the Lord puts into our lives to help us along. One of my dear friends and missionaries here is Sister Dransfield. I feel like she knows my heart like my mother does. Since arriving in Nauvoo, it has been full speed ahead all the time. I haven't had much time to think about how I feel about anything other than the missionary responsibilities that I have here at this time. Sister Dransfield stayed at the house with me one night when I was sick so that my companion could go to the music practice with the rest of the sisters because she is playing the piano for one of the numbers, as well as singing a song that she needed to practice. My being sick and staying at the house with Sister Dransfield was one of the most needed and precious experiences. 

I absolutely LOVE being a missionary. I treasure these experiences so much. One of my favorite things in the whole world is when someone prays for the first time to Heavenly Father and they feel the Spirit. Oh, what a precious experience. I want to help as many people as I possibly can make it back to Heavenly Father by helping them come closer to their Savior. I LOVE the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Please, please, please attend the temple as often as possible. I went this morning and had a special experience with a woman that hasn't been in a long time. Heavenly Father doesn't mind if you don't know what you are doing or if you haven't been in  a long time. He just WANTS YOU TO COME and to start coming regularly. If it is uncomfortable right now, go again and again and again. The temple is soooo important. Serving in Nauvoo has really helped me gain a deep love and testimony of the temple. I LOVE THE TEMPLE. And I love to see it! =)

Love,

Sister Heather Ripplinger

Sister Ripplinger's Weekly Letter, Handcart Trek and Sunburns, May 7, 2013

Dear family and friends,

This week has been really wonderful. I am learning sooooo much and it's amazing to see what the Lord has to teach us. I've been praying really hard about specific topics and the Spirit is working on me. It's AMAZING!!!!!! We had a few really neat experiences with all of the sisters this week.

Yesterday, all 20 sisters and Sister Gilliland went on a handcart trek. We started out at 9:00 am and we got back about 2:30 pm. We were all divided into companies and had a handcart to take as a "family". We each brought 17 lbs worth of stuff to make the carts more heavy. Some of the sisters have been sick all week, so they were weak and tired, but they were troupers and they made it. It was a really neat experience for me. There were five of us to my handcart and we were able to see the other handcarts ahead going up the steep and muddy hills before we got there. It had been raining all week, so everything was pretty wet and muddy. Everyone was slipping  and struggling to get the handcarts up the hill, but we all made it. My handcart group was struggling quite a bit. We were in the back most of the trek. We got a system down where Sister Holt and I were pulling in the front and it was working really well. I started to think, "Ok, it's easy like this. We'll enjoy the rest of the trek." Right after I thought that, we all stopped and some of the sisters were "claimed as sick" and taken away. Sister Holt was taken from me, as well as one other sister. So three of us (one who had been sick all week) pulled our handcart up the huge hill by ourselves and it was pretty difficult. We barely made it and the other handcarts weren't in sight when we got there. haha I was very, very grateful to get Sister Holt back at the top of the hill. That experience made me realize how hard it really might have been to lose your spouse on the trek across the plains. To be honest, I was devastated when Sister Holt was taken. The woman I was representing on the trek had come from England and had a comfortable lifestyle. They had two homes and were doing well. Her husband would never convert to the religion, but he wouldn't let her trek across the plains on her own, so he came. Halfway across, he died and they had a lot of challenges the whole way, but she made it to Salt Lake.  In life, the Lord knows us and He knows that there is no growth in comfort. As soon as we start to get comfortable or it gets easy, He gives us the opportunity to grow, to push harder, and to become better. We're all supposed to go onward and upward. 

Today we went to the beautuiful Nauvoo Temple. We get to be the daughters when we participate in sealings and I LOVE being around those temple missionaries. President Condie is the temple president and he is AMAZING. He was a general authority for several years and has so much experience. He was performing the sealings and afterwards, we had our own little lesson from him. We were sitting there with big eyes, listening intently to what he had to say about the sealing ordinance. I LOVE the opportunities that come in Nauvoo!!!!!

This week, we were serving in the Lyon Drug and a man came in that had a relative from the 1840's that was baptized in the Lyon Drug by Heber C. Kimball. It was so neat to hear him tell the story of his ancestor and see the sparkle in his eyes. It's always fun to see what will happen when we are serving in the historic sites. Sister Mills is a lot like one of the senior sisters we served with. The historic sites take a lot of endurance and those two sisters were going crazy sitting still for very long. So they were both jumping up and down, flapping their hands in the air like birds, and laughing about how funny they were. hahahaha The other senior sister there looked at me and we both started laughing. This time of the year was pretty slow last year, as well, so I have some goals set to make the most of the time we have. I'm reading the Book of Mormon in 85 days, reading the Doctrine and Covenants, reading "Our Heritage", and I am trying to teach Sister Mills everything I can. Endure it well!!!!

This week, we got bikes for the sisters and everyone was very, VERY excited. My companion was especially excited. The first morning we had them, we woke up and went for a long bike ride up a long, steep hill. haha I have to try and wear her out somehow! =) Then we rode to our site we were serving in that day and back home afterwards. It is so much fun to enjoy Nauvoo in a big, puffy pioneer dress on a bike. 

One of my favorite memories from this week is when we were serving in the Cultural Hall. There is a stage/theater on the first floor where some of the live performances take place in the evening. President Call came in during the morning time and we were standing on the stage. He is "George" in one of the skits they do. George has a crazy wife named Agatha and she's always bossing him around and telling him this and that. George works the system right and convinces the doctor that she's crazy, so the doctor takes her away. In that scene, Agatha is jumping and squealing and fighting to get away from the doctor. Anyways, so we are standing there on the stage, I smiled and started yelling, "GEORGE!!" and President Call hands me the duster that Agatha uses. I start jumping around yelling, "Oh! It's George!!! He's the crazy one!" We acted out that scene and I pretended to know all of Agatha's lines. It was SO MUCH FUN!!!! 

I love this gospel. I love being a missionary!!! We have the opportunity to learn and grow, to be taught by the Spirit, and to share the gospel with others. I am so grateful to know that Heavenly Father is perfect and that we can trust Him. 

Love,

Sister Heather Ripplinger

Sister Mills and I

Sister Zibetti and I

Sister Ripplinger's Weekly Letter, April 30, 2013 Clean Hands and Pure Hearts

Sent: Tuesday, April 30, 2013 11:18 AM
Subject: Clean Hands and Pure Hearts

My dear friends and family,

One of my favorite things about Nauvoo is that we are able to attend the temple each week. This morning we went to an endowment session with six of us sisters and it was wonderful! One of the temple missionaries whispered to us on our way out, "There is a special spirit in the sessions when you sisters come. Thank you." I love the fact that we see the same faces in church on Sunday, in the sites, as well as in the temple. 

There is a young woman from TAHITI that is living in Nauvoo for three months for a work experience. She walked into the Visitor's Center and I had the opportunity to explain a little about the temple and the Plan of Salvation. She said that she felt this indescribable peace in Nauvoo and when I was talking about the temple. She had walked on the temple grounds earlier and felt that same feeling. When I found out that she would be in Nauvoo for a few months, I got the powerful feeling from the Spirit. I'm excited to keep in touch and see what happens. 

We met this outstanding couple from Australia yesterday and I was VERY touched by their story. Both are converts to the Church. The man said that one day he was reading from the Book of Mormon that someone left out  in a hotel room and he knew that was the Church for him, so he found missionaries and asked when he could be baptized. But his wife, however, was one tough cookie to crack. She avoided the missionaries and church members like a plague. Finally, after a year, she told her husband that it was either her or the Church. He said that he would have an answer for her in a week. After a few days the Spirit touched her heart and she called the missionaries. She was baptized shortly thereafter. Since then, they have been sealed in the temple, he has served as a bishop and is now serving as a district president. They were in the United States for about a month to attend General Conference and visit the historic sites, as well as to see the missionaries that taught them years ago. It gave me a better vision of the eternities and what years down the road may be like. We have no idea the potential of the people we love, but we better love them like crazy because they are God's chosen children and they have work to do for Him, as well.

I had the opportunity to serve in Carthage Jail on Sunday for the first time since last fall and oh, how I loved it! The tulips are blooming and the weather is warming up. I love it when I walk out of the Visitor's Center and hit a wave of warmth. The humidity is starting to kick in and I like it!!!!! Next week, all of the sisters get to take a morning out of the sites, and we're going on a little three hour pioneer handcart trek together. I'm so excited for that!!!!!!! Living in Nauvoo really is like living in a dream. The Spirit is so incredibly strong, the people are so incredibly kind, and so many miracles happen. I LOVE IT!!!!!!

One man that came into the Bakery when I was serving there shared a really neat experience about his conversion. When he was in his 30's, he started having dreams that heavenly messengers were visiting him and teaching him about Jesus Christ. Finally, one said that this was his last visit, but he had a question for the man. "Do you have clean hands and a pure heart?" This man looked down at his hands and the question hit him deep in his heart. He woke up kind of troubled by the question and kept thinking about it for a few days. Then one day these two young men showed up at the door and he told them to get lost. Before he could shut the door, one young man (a missionary) said, "I just have one question for you. Do you have clean hands and a pure heart?" This man stopped dead in his tracks with big eyes and stared at the elders. He let them in and was baptized three weeks later. Those missionaries were in tune with the Spirit and Heavenly Father knew exactly what that man needed to have his heart softened. MIRACLE!!!!

So I have an embarrassing story to tell...that made me laugh really hard. My whole mission experience has been wonderful and I try to be diligent with my time. California was absolutely insane and busy, which I'm grateful for. Since arriving back in Nauvoo, things have been just as busy. Sister Zibetti and I are always planning something or trying to help someone keep going, and occasionally try to brush our hair in the morning. In addition, we are training new missionaries that are full of energy and want to learn everything we have to offer. So you can imagine, by the end of the day, I flop into bed, dead tired. So one day, Sister Mills and I were serving in the Log School House with two other senior sisters. Not a lot was happening that day and hardly anyone was in town. So I put together my little scrapbook of all my California pictures and wrote in names and experiences, etc so I will always remember them. Then I read about 50 pages in the Book of Mormon...then I did a few Preach My Gospel activities...then we sat in the sun and talked with the seniors, then I wrote in my journal...you get the picture... haha At about 4:00 pm, in the last hour, I was just hanging in there to stay awake. There are only two chairs in that site, which we had the two senior sisters sit in. Sister Mills was working on a cross stitch project on a little foot stool and I was leaning against the wall, sitting on the floor. I'll just get right to it... at about 4:00, I slithered down and fell into a deep sleep. I'm out like a dead woman, laying on the floor, when all the sudden, I hear a creak in the floor. My eyes crack open and President Gilliland is standing there. (OH MY GOSH!!!!!!)  I get this sheepish little grin and say, "Hi, President..." I started to try to sit up and he told me to just stay there. He talked to us for a few minutes, then he left. We were all laughing and I just thought, "I need to repent..." hahahaha The next day in our weekly meeting that Sister Zibetti and I have with him, President and Sister Gilliland talked about not wearing ourselves out and mentioned that in some of the sites, there were beds upstairs that we could take naps in if the sites were slow. I just figure once I make it through the Isaiah chapters, I'll be able to stay awake. =) 

One day, my companion and I were sitting outside in the sun by our site. We were soaking up the warmth and a temple missionary came out of his house across the street and brought up pop-cycles. Such a sweet heart!!!!

I love being a missionary!!!!!!! I love being back in Nauvoo, I still love my California family, and I love those back home. I am so grateful for your love and support. Heavenly Father hears your prayers and He loves you!!!!

Love,

Sister Ripplinger

Sister Ripplinger's Letter, April 23, 2013 Life, Encourage, Inspire, and Bless

Sent: Tuesday, April 23, 2013 10:34 AM
Subject: Life, Encourage, Inspire, and Bless

My dear friends and family,

The thunder is rumbling, the wind is blowing, and Nauvoo is radiating the Spirit as much as ever before. I LOVE NAUVOO!!!!! We received about 40 more new couples this week and the 40+ performing missionaries will be coming in next week. Nauvoo is a tiny, little place, just packed full of representatives of the Lord. I'm so excited for all of the miracles that can happen in such a sacred place. 

Joseph Smith translated the Book of Mormon in a VERY short period of time, which is absolutely miraculous. He started on approximately April 7th and completed it on July 1st. I had already set a goal to read the Book of Mormon with my family at that pace (85ish days), but when I discovered that he started it in April, I decided that I wanted to read it during the same time period at the same pace. So as I am reading it, I am marking references to angels ministering to people and when prayers are sent to heaven. It is always incredible to me that every time we read the Book of Mormon, something new stands out and we learn what we need at that time. During the last month, I have had a lot of thoughts about angels visiting their family members and it is amazing what I'm learning from the Book of Mormon through the Spirit. I would invite everyone to read the Book of Mormon in 85 days because it will strengthen your testimony of the Book of Mormon, as well as of the Prophet Joseph. Mark references to a specific topic that you feel inspires, such as the doctrine of Christ (faith, repentance, baptism, the Holy Ghost, enduring to the end, etc), or when prophesies were fulfilled, when prayers were answered, references to charity, faith, obedience, or whichever. Your testimony will be strengthened significantly and  the Spirit will teach you new things that you need to help you come closer to Christ.  It will also strengthen you in your capacity as disciples of Christ. "Your ability to teach with power from the scriptures comes in large measure from the time you personally spend studying them." Preach My Gospel pg 180

We have people in Nauvoo from all over the world already. I've talk with them from New Zealand, Japan, and Australia. There are people from all over the United States coming and it is so incredible to see God's children. Something that I absolutely love to think about is that EVERYONE we see walking around the store, on the streets, that we take on tours, that we interact with...are all children of God, they are our brothers and sisters. We are all a part of God's family! There is so much power in that. It allows me to be completely comfortable talking to anyone that I see and to just look forward to learning what their story is and being directed by the Spirit to know what to say. I LOVE IT!!!!!!

This week, there have been a lot of storms and a whole lot of rain. There have been some flooding problems and we had the opportunity to help out. We all went out to fill sand bags and everyone really enjoyed it. I'm grateful to be serving with so many sisters that love work and have a good attitude about working in the cold and shoveling sand. They were all singing hymns as we worked and they are awesome. I love them! One morning at about 6:15, an extremely loud crack of thunder shook our whole house. Most of us were in a deep sleep, and poor Sister Dransfield was having a dream about tornadoes. She woke up when the house shook and frantically ran to the window and shouted, "SISTERS!!!! A TORNADO!!!!!!" I was half asleep and looked over at her. Everyone started laughing when she explained that she was having a bad dream and the thunder made it seem so real. The thunder storms here are INCREDIBLE. I LOVE to hear the thunder and watch the bright strikes of lightening in the sky. It is so beautiful and makes me feel a little bit of the power that our Heavenly Father has. 

A lot of my thoughts this week were focused on the sisters I serve with. I love them. I've been striving to develop a vision of what this summer will do for the rest of our eternities and what I am to learn from them. It is an absolute blessing to serve among so many powerful missionaries, including those senior missionaries. They inspire me and I treasure the experiences I have with them. I have been studying President Eyring's talk "Help Them Aim High" and I've been pondering and praying to know each of the strengths of the missionaries here. It is so neat to see the Spirit teach me and recognize how precious they really are.  My trainer, Sister Coyne, got married yesterday in the Nauvoo Temple!!!!!! We were able to attend her wedding reception last night and it was sooooo much fun!!!! She looked beautiful and was so happy. It was fun to be there and to spend time with the missionaries. It kind of made me flash forward to how we will all be friends for the rest of eternity and will be attending each other's wedding receptions and other big events, that we'll help each other, and have memories that will continue through our lives. Haha. I LOVE IT!!!!!! Only in Nauvoo do you get to attend events like for your previous companions... =)

A lot of the experiences I've had this week, I can't really share, but I am so grateful for everything that's been happening. I know without a doubt that the Lord hears the prayers of His children and He answers them. I have had so many of my own prayers answered throughout my life and I love to see when others have those same faith building experiences. We are all improving and progressing, we are all on the path that leads us back to our Heavenly Father. It is our responsibility to help one another along the way and to seek opportunities to lift, encourage, inspire, and bless others. I am so grateful for the opportunity to serve as a missionary. I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY!!!!!! But I'm excited for all that lies ahead in the rest of my life because I do not intend to stop sharing the gospel when I give up my name tag. The Lord wouldn't put so much effort into helping me along, if He didn't intend for me to keep using what I've learned. We have the knowledge of the truth and the blessings of eternity and we need to share them with others!!!!! Jesus Christ is the Savior and Redeemer of the world. He will help us overcome our weaknesses and He will never give up hope. We just have to keep trying. As Elder Holland so well stated in Conference that God knows we are imperfect and He's still willing to work with us. All God has ever had to work with is imperfect people. We just lean on the Lord and let Christ take His role in our lives as our Savior. I am so grateful for the Atonement and for Heavenly Father's plan for all of us. This is God's kingdom on the EARTH!!!!!!!! 

Love,

Sister Heather Ripplinger

Sister Ripplinger's Letter, April 16, 2013 Blessings from Heaven

Sent: Tuesday, April 16, 2013 10:21 AM
Subject: Blessings from Heaven

Dear family and friends,

I feel so blessed to be back in Nauvoo. The Spirit here is incredible and we have so many rare opportunities in this special place. Over the last few days, we've been doing a lot of training and learning. However, we had the opportunity to attend the temple with all of our sisters, went out to Carthage Jail last night for a testimony meeting, we watched Rendezvous in Old Nauvoo, the Joseph Smith Movie, Remembering Nauvoo, visiting several of the historic sites, etc. One of my absolute favorite parts of the day is driving up the hill at night to go home and driving right next to that beautiful Nauvoo Temple, glowing in the night. 

My companion that just came from the MTC is Sister Mills. Heavenly Father has blessed me with her. She is full of fire and energy, she is like a sponge and wants to learn everything that I can possibly teach her, she remembers everything, she isn't afraid to talk to people, and she is just WONDERFUL!!!!!! She has a gorgeous singing voice and I love sitting next to her in church and for our companion study. She's from Cache Valley, Utah!!!!! She is very patient when I have to leave with Sister Zibetti to plan schedules or do assistant assignments. She goes on exchanges with Sister Zibett's companion, Sister Richardson. They both are wonderful. All of the sisters this summer are absolutely wonderful. There is a spirit in our home that is just so strong. We are all growing close together and there is unity. 

I've been striving to develop a vision of what Heavenly Father needs me to do this summer. One of my goals is to help these sister missionaries truly become sisters in Zion. I know that we are all together for specific reasons and I want to have unity and strength within us. When I see them, I see future leaders of the church, mothers that raise disciples of Christ, wives that strengthen and love their husbands, and strong daughters in God's kingdom. I want to have eternal perspective and learn life long lessons together. President Monson gave a talk in the Priesthood session a few conferences ago and spoke of a missionary who would strive to see everyone he spoke with dressed in white. I strived to do that throughout my mission. Last week, I had the opportunity to actually see these sisters dressed in white in the temple and it was powerful. They are all strong and faithful. I'm just so excited to be with them this summer!!!!!

We had the opportunity to be in President and Sister Gillilands' home a couple of times this weekend and I absolutely LOVE those opportunities. They both sit in chairs in front of us and we all gather around on the couches (semi-circle) and sit on the floor in front of them. Imagine 20 sister missionaries all gathered around their mission president and his wife. I LOVE IT!!!!!! I feel very blessed to be back with the Gillilands again. So many things that they taught me last summer stayed with me all winter and will stay with me for the rest of my life. I'm so grateful for the opportunity to learn from them. Sister Zibetti and I also get to serve around President Gilliland a lot and he is teaching us a lot about leadership and I'm learning from him. Oh, I never would have expected all of the things that have been happening. I love this work so much!!!!!

This week, as I was running in between meetings and everything that was happening, I saw four men wandering around together and felt like I needed to speak with them. I looked at my watch and didn't have much time before I was supposed to be upstairs, but I veered off and started talking to them. Three of the men were visiting from Saudi-Arabia and wanted to know about the Mormon religion!!!!! I had the opportunity to testify in a few short minutes and it was just incredible to think that Heavenly Father already has people coming from all over the world. I am sooooo excited to see what happens this summer. I know that the Lord is hastening His work. I can feel this sense of urgency in every fiber of my body. I LOVE THIS GOSPEL and I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY!!!!!!

"The more people you love, the happier you will be." Sister Gilliland

Love,

Sister Heather Ripplinger