Pictures South Side

Yay a visit with Carleen!

Love the braids for fast crimpy hair the next day~!

Mini mission!

Love the O'Brien's! It was so good to see them again!

Ahh I love Indian food!

South Side

Hello everyone!

Well. It's been a crazy week. Two exchanges. One mini missionary. And

a transfer. Yup, the dreaded day has come... I am leaving lakeshore!!

Saying goodbye to the city and headed to south side. That's right my

friends... The south side of Chicago. I will be in an area called

Chicago Heights. It is the suburbs of south of Chicago. I leave early

Tuesday morning and head down to meet my new companion! I am very

nervous... and really sad to leave sister Webber... But I know change

brings forth new  opportunities and allows room for growth.

I found a quote by Elder M Russell Ballard that I LOVE really stood

out to me this week. "You can never do more for the lord than he can

do for you. Whenever you serve the lord he blesses you. Weaknesses

become strengths, challenges become opportunities, trials become

triumphs, and adversity becomes an adventure in the service of the

Lord. " It is so very true, When we lose ourselves in the work of the

Lord we find ourselves. I am so grateful for this opportunity to

strengthen my relationship with the savior as I grow closer to him

through following the promptings of the spirit. I have a strong

testimony of the importance of sharing this gospel with others. Jesus

Christ lives. He is our savior. The Book of Mormon is the word of God.

This is the restored church of Jesus Christ here on earth today.

Even though I am scared and nervous for my new area... I know that as

I place my trust in The lord I will find peace and strength. I came

across the song "how firm a foundation" in my studies this morning.

“Fear not, I am with thee; oh, be not dismayed, For I am thy God and

will still give thee aid. I’ll strengthen thee, help thee, and cause

thee to stand,... Upheld by my righteous, omnipotent hand.” As we

place our faith in Jesus Christ and build our foundation upon that

faith... We will be able to resist the temptations and overcome the

challenges and trials that we face!

Thank you for all of your love and support! Sorry it's been a crazy

day/week! I'll update you on the new area next week!

Love,

Sister Parke

Pictures Too blessed to be Stressed

Seriously..gum on my shoe!?! ;)

ahh..chocolate. love it!

We are truly "sisters"!

 I love this city and all its many wonderful people from all over the world! 

Too blessed to be stressed!

Hello everyone!

What a great week it has been! Soaking up the sunshine and teaching

people about the gospel! Sister Webber and I have been working hard

and the lord continues to bless us as we faithfully serve him. I'll

just jump right into the week!

Tuesday was incredible and full of so many miracles. Cool experience.

So our appointment fell through so we decided we would call some pnis

to try and set up some appointments. We were walkin down the street

and passed a man sitting on the side of the road. Not thinkin too much

about it... We kept walking. The spirit prompted us to go back and to

talk to the man. We introduced ourselves as missionaries and we sat

down and taught him the restoration right then and there! It was SO

awesome. The spirit was so strong. He is going through a very rough

spot in his life right now. His wife just left him with the kids so he

flew to Chicago to try and visit his children.. His bag got stolen and

he is out of work.. So now he is forced to live out of shelters. It is

the saddest story! But I know God is aware of him and this is his

opportunity to humble himself, and turn to The lord and ask for help.

His life seems like it is at ruins, but I know God can fix all broken

things. It made me think of the talk by dieter f uchtdorf, "tomorrow

the lord will do wonders among you".  I invite all of you to read it.

This is Gods work. He is so Innately aware of each of his children.

Sister Webber and I had a very cool experience tonight. It was 8:45 at

night and we had about 15 min left in our day. We were super tired

because it had been a long hot day and were tempted to call it a

night. We prayed and told God that we had time to contact one more

person and asked him to lead us to where he would have us be. We

rounded the corner to our apartment and found and old woman standing

at the bus stop looking confused. We started talking with her..  She

just moved from Korea... In her broken English she explained she was

trying to go south.. But no bus was coming. We looked up the times for

the bus, and it said "no arrival times". (What?! When does that ever

happen? NEVER.) so we were tryin to help her out.. And she recognized

our name tags. "You.. Mormon?" She then simply explained to us how her

sister was a Mormon and attended BYU many many years ago. She was up

north visiting her sister for the day. We asked her were her sister

lived and she said right across the street... From our apartment! So

we started taking down information when her sister walked up right

then!! She recognized us as missionaries and was SO happy!! She

explained that she had a Book of Mormon and it brought her so much

happiness and that she wants to come back to church. She explained how

she found the missionaries in Korea and then moved out to Utah. It was

one of the coolest experiences. God knows each of his children

individually. What a humbling experience to be a part of this sacred

work. Sister Webber and I learned a few things that night. 1. We

witness miracles when we are obedient. 2. Even when you feel like

giving up, keep going! 3. This is without a doubt the work of the

Lord. 4. Tender mercies of the Lord are real.

So another cool miracle moment. Flashback to about three months ago we

contacted a man named Robert on the bus. Turns out he had just been

baptized a year ago but stopped coming to church. Anyways, when we

talked to him then he wasn't too interested in coming back to church,

we gave him our number.. Didn't think too much about it. Then this

week we get a call... And it was Robert!! He said he was going through

a rough time and wanted to start getting back into church. We met with

him on Friday... Guess what? He is eligible for the SA branch!

#miracle. Anyways it was super awesome.

We also got to meet with Carleen this week for the first time in

forever! She has been so busy with work! It was great to catch up with

her... We have really been helping her with knowing how to share the

gospel with her family and friends. It brings so much happiness when

we share the gospel with those we love!

We had an incredible day on Saturday. It's always a wonderful thing

when 3 out of your four appointments don't fall through!  We had our

first appointment with a man that we contacted this week named

Mehemed. He is from Uzbekistan... Pretty cool huh? Chicago is the

biggest melting pot and has people from ALL over the world. Sometimes

I don't even feel like I am in America! Ha! But anyways.. The lesson

went well! He is open to learning more, however he has a hang up on

modern day prophets. So we are going to keep in touch and help him

understand the Book of Mormon better.

Oh another crazy miracle. We were downtown Saturday evening for an

appointment.. Tons and tons and tons of people because it was

lalapoluza? Yeah. Don't ask. Some major concert here in Chicago at

millennium park... Anyways soooooo many people. So we were takin some

alternative routes to try and make it to the bus to get back home. We

unexpectedly ran into the less active member Steve who we had been

working with about a month ago! we had lost connection with him

because he got a new phone. Buuuut he said that he wanted to come to

church next Sunday! Yay! Sunday was full of tender mercies! Sonny and

Michael came to church! It was great! We had an awesome lesson with

Sonny this week and are helping him progress towards baptism. We also

had a great lesson with Michael and talked to him a lot about Fasting.

He has been praying and reading from the Book of Mormon and has

committed to fast next Sunday to seek an answer. He is one of the most

spiritual people I have ever met. The members in this ward are so

INCREDIBLE. Annette brought her friend Elizabeth to church on

Sunday... Which was great! We connected with her very well .., and

then we had another member bring a friend who moved here from

Wales--he has the cooooooolest accent. #referrals. Man, I never want

to leave this ward!! I LOVE it with all of my heart.

Jess is doing sooooo good. She got a calling and her temple recommend.

Sadly the temple is closed until September... But she is getting

started on her family history to take names to the temple! So so happy

for her. Cool story. So randomly out of the blue her landlord called

her and told her that she couldn't renew her lease and would have to

move out of her apartment. Jess was heartbroken! This is the cool

part, so she was looking for new apartments and found one that is only

a mile away from us and the difference in rent is EXACTLY what she

needs to pay for tithing every month. Coincidence? absolutely NOT.

I have been reading the book "our search for happiness" by Elder M.

Russell Ballard. I love the simple restored truths of the gospel. I

feel so blessed to have the knowledge of the gospel in my life. How

often we take it for granted!! I am grateful for the love of the

Savior for all men! I cherish every moment I have to help others feel

of this love. Thank you for all of your support, love, and prayers! I

hope you have a wonderful week!

Love,

Sister Rachel Parke

Pictures I Stand All Amazed

Hello from Chicago!

Our view!

I have know idea....its 95 degrees and 80% humidity..I would take some falling ice about now!

Jess's Baptism!!

Such a happy day!

She is a spiritual giant!

One more city view!

I Stand All Amazed

Dear Family and Friends,

Wow. It is the end of July! Where did all the time go!? Summer in

Chicago is the greatest. I have fallen in love with this city! Don't

think I will ever come home! Sister Webber and I had a great week

despite the CRAZY weather! We witnessed so many miracles!

Monday:

On Monday evening we had a lesson with Jess at the mission home with

president Bingham and his family. We had a powerful lesson about

temples and families. Teaching about the temple made me understand the

purpose of why we have temples and now important they are. We have

temples today because God loves us so much and wants us to progress

and come closer to him. I am so grateful for the power of the

priesthood and the blessings of the temple! After the lesson we went

to the temple and walked around the temple grounds with Jess. She told

us how excited she was for her baptism, and how she is looking forward

to going through the temple next year. I could not be happier for her!

Tuesday:

Cool miracle moment. So a few weeks ago sister Webber and I contacted

a man named Louie. He was interested in the Book of Mormon and

receiving a bible. So we got his information and scheduled a time to

go over and teach him. We referred him to the elders in the area

because he is definitely not in the YSA. Haha okay so fast forward to

this week sister Webber and I are walking down the street and we both

feel drawn towards a man. We start talking to him and turns out...

It's LOUIE. The missionaries never came! **ELDERS!?!** so yeah that

was a little frustrating.. But such a miracle that we ran into him

again! (What are the odds in millions of people in Chicago!?) We then

had the opportunity to deliver his bible and Book of Mormon to him and

taught him the restoration. Romeo our recent convert came with us and

testified powerfully. Louie should be going to church this Sunday!

Heavenly Father is so aware of his children!

Wednesday.

Walked a lot. Sweat a lot. Drank a lot. Ladies and gents. Summertime

in Chicago... Bring on the heat!! Sister Webber and I had a nice solid

day of finding because our appointments fell through. We Found some

solid pnis. We keep on prayin that we will find more people to teach!

Thursday:

The weather decided to be absolutely crazy this week! So sister Webber

and I decided to head downtown and weekly plan in the church office

building! The view is absolutely amazing! It was awesome because we

got to watch the storm.. The lighting was pretty intense.

Saturday

Saturday was easily one of the best days of my mission. Jess's baptism

was PERFECT. She is a spiritual giant. The most prepared individual to

be baptized, she truly understands conversion. The happiness and joy

that radiates from her is indescribable! What a happy day.. She has

been preparing herself to be baptized, and Heavenly Father has blessed

her so much. I felt the spirit so strongly as the ordinance was

preformed. After she came up out of the water, she was crying... Tears

of joy. We all were crying. I feel as if I can say I caught a mere

glimpse of what a fullness of joy is! Jess is one of the most

incredible people I had ever met. It has been such an amazing

opportunity to have been an instrument in gods hand to help introduce

and teach her about the gospel. Her testimony is powerful. You

wouldn't even believe that just a few months ago she didn't even

believe in God. The gospel has changed her life completely. At the end

of her baptism she bore her testimony and told her conversion story.

An experience I will never forget. There was not a person in that room

who could not deny the spirit that was felt on this day! I love Jess

so much and I could not be happier for her!

Sunday:

Sunday was Jess's confirmation. She was literally glowing. What a

great day! So many miracles, cool story. So about two months ago we

contacted a man named Gabriel on the street. We have tried many times

to get ahold of him, but found no success. Well, Saturday evening we

had to come in early because the weather was insane so we started

calling pnis. We finally got ahold of him and he came to church on

Sunday! It was awesome! He is from Nigeria and knew of the church

there! We are having a lesson with him this week to introduce him to

the Book of Mormon!

Another happy Sunday news! Michael came to church again! Yay! He likes

it a lot and he fits in perfectly with the branch! A member invited

him over for dinner and a lesson next Sunday night! Looking forward to

that! Okay so kinda semi humorous story. So it was Insanely HOT and

HUMID and the school building we attend for church doesn't have air

conditioning.. Sister Webber and I are there all day for both wards..

And well we may have murmured about the heat. after church we had

about a mile walk to our appointment... And guess what? There was the

biggest Downpour of rain! Showed up suuuuper soaking wet! God has a

wonderful sense of humor. But hey at least we got a shower!

Side note. Cara is progressing well. She came to Jess's baptism and

confirmation, and was very touched by the spirit. It is amazing to see

how the gospel of Jesus Christ can change people. We had a great

lesson with Cara this week about prayer. Due to some previous

hardships in her life she had stopped praying. We committed her to

pray every morning and evening for something specific and promised

that God would answer. She is making slow but steady progress and is

very willing to learn and follow the commitments we leave with her. At

Jess's baptism, president came up to her and asked her when she was

going to be baptized. (President Bingham is the boldest person I have

ever met in my life) Cara just laughed, but I know it is something

that she has been thinking about a lot. Please pray for her that her

questions may be answers and she will receive a witness of the truth!

I restarted reading the Book of Mormon again a few weeks ago and I am

in my favorite chapters of Mosiah-when Abinadi comes to declare

repentance to King Noah and his people.  Abinadi inspires me with his

courage to stand up for what he knows to be right and declare the

message of the Lord to call the people unto repentance. This really

stood out to me because the responsibility of a missionary is to help

others come closer to Jesus Christ... And we can only become closer to

Jesus Christ through repentance. It's as simple and hard as that!

But.. Just as Abinadi teaches the people... Repentance is made

possible through the Savior Jesus Christ. As I was reading Mosiah 14,

I just felt a sincere gratitude for Jesus Christ. He was willing to

come to this earth and die for our sins so that we can return to live

with Heavenly Father again someday!

One of my favorite hymns is "I Stand All Amazed"

I stand all amazed at the love Jesus

offers me,

Confused at the grace that so fully he

proffers me.

I tremble to know that for me he was

crucified,

That for me, a sinner, he suffered, he

bled and died.

Oh, it is wonderful

that he should care for me

Enough to die for me!

Oh, it is wonderful,

Wonderful to me!

I love being a missionary. I love the opportunity I have every day to

go out and to testify of the Savior Jesus Christ. It's. The. Best.

I love you all! Thank you for all of your love and support! Have a great week!

Love,

Sister Parke