Week 33: She Audi. RIP Mendenhall, Hello Madison!

Well folks, this has been an crazy week! We have had so many little tender mercies, we went on exchanges, and I found out IM LEAVING!!! We got transfer calls Saturday and I'm headed to Madison, MS (a suburb of Jackson). I'm so sad to leave Mendenhall, but I'm so excited! I'll finally be in an area with a Raising Canes AND a Target! Prayers do get answered guys! But not only am I getting transferred to Madison, but I also found out I'm going to be a Sister Training Leader (STL) for the next few transfers. I'm so excited but also really really nervous! This transfer is going to be so crazy and full of new experiences! 

This week has been so jam packed with miracles! We went on exchanges with some other sisters in the zone and I literally learned sooooo much! It was so awesome to be able to just soak up all the different teaching styles and all the different gospel perspectives that these sisters had and it taught me SO MUCH! We had the classic exchange miracle where we were finally able to contact someone after months of nothing! That was awesome! We had some amazing spirit led lessons and it just made me rededicate myself to the work.

So Madison, MS is actually where my brother Elder Crouch served 4 years ago. I was honestly shocked to find out I'll be serving the same area as him! My Mission President completely forgot that he served there. This call was 100% by the Lord. And honestly, its brought some insecurities out that I didn't even know I had! But as I've truly reflected on this new area, I truly know God is in the details, and for some reason He needs this Crouch to go there too! God is in every. Single. Detail. Of the missionary work and I've seen His hand in this transfer too! I cant wait to see what this next transfer has instore! 

So Come Follow Me has been so revelatory for me! I decided to change how I study the Book of Mormon for Come Follow Me and read it with the intent to apply it to myself and write personal principles in the margins. Well, its changed my perspective on gospel study! This week was a little hard in all honesty and the reason? Music! If you know me, you know how important music is to me, how much I love it and how its such a huge part of my life. Well, we just got updated music standards from President Varner and that meant I had to give up songs that I absolutely LOVE to be obedient. And that was hard to do! To put music on the altar like that was really tough. Well, I was studying the Come Follow Me lesson this past week in 1 Nephi 9 and gosh, it's such a good chapter. The Lord commands Nephi to keep the record of Nephi's family, even though Nephi knows Lehi is doing the same thing! But, even though Nephi didn't know the wise purpose that God did (aka the lost 116 pages of the manuscript) he obeyed. The Spirit gave me a principle to write down. This thought came to me. Even though I dont always know they "why" to a rule or commandment, the Lord expects me to follow and obey because He knows the "why". I feel like I really just ask myself why I cant listen to a song that makes me happy or do this or do that, but really, the Lord is just asking us to trust that He knows better than we do. 

I've loved Mendenhall more that I can even express! Its definitely a sacred place to me, and I've been so blessed to serve here and serve the AMAZING people here! I love this gospel, I love Jesus Christ and i love that God trusts me enough to share it with His children. God is too good! I love yall so very much and I love the people of Mississippi! Talk to yall next week!

Love, Sister Crouch 

1. Miss Ernestine, Garrel and Arthur. They're the best!

2. Mendenhall holds my heart

3. Kings Cake!!! Mardi Gras is coming folks

4. Finally had an amazing burger for the first time in 7 months

5. Exchanges!

6. The Florence LITstrict! 

7. Our girl Lana wanted to try and heel click with us! (And yes I know I didn't heel click, I messed up ) 

Week 32: Surviving the Elements in the Good ol' South

Well friends, I survived a tornado! Safe to say I'm getting the full experience down here in the South. First Hurricane Barry and now a tornado...kind of. Saturday morning we were getting ready for our day per usual and my phone kept giving me tornado watch alerts. A watch means it can happen, its might happen but it's not for sure. A warning means it's coming something's been sighted by radar or in the air. Well, I'm still getting ready and all the sudden I get a tornado warning alert and a minute later we hear the tornado sirens! Sam calls us and tells us that we need to get in the hallway with our mattresses because a tornado was headed our way! Well, we get under the mattresses, and a minute goes by, then 2, then 10 and no tornado. The weather got super crazy but the tornado ended up going past us and not landing anywhere by us! But, I can say I lived through tornado sirens! 

We had a miracle weekend! We had 4 nonmembers at church yesterday and we found 3 new people to teach! It was so awesome! Theres a family we have been teaching and we were getting ready to start a lesson and they stop us before we start because their dad Cornelius invited his mom to join us and learn about the gospel! It was so awesome. All their kids wanted their own copies of The Book of Mormon and a pamphlet and they are loving what they're learning! It's been so awesome to see so many people in this area progressing! Sister Johnson and I are definitely being so blessed. The Lord really does consecrate our efforts!

I had a real cool experience yesterday. We were trying a former investigator and they were running out the door but before they left they asked if we had a message to share. Well we always have a message to share so we told her yes! I pull put my Book of Mormon and start flipping through and Mosiah 2:41 really stood out to me, but I pushed it aside. I kept thinking this lady probably tries to keep the commandments and I kept flipping, but I just figured what the heck. I'll share it. So I read that scripture and she asks why I shared that. Mosiah 2:41 talks about the blessed and happy state of those who keep the commandments of God and I told her it had been on my mind and how the commandments and God are the only way we will find true happiness. Turns out she had been thinking that same thought all week! The Lord is in the details!! If we listen, He makes us the instrument He needs us to be.

I was listening to a talk this week and something they said that stood out to me was "The commandments gave me a great life." I've been thinking about that a lot. The commandments have truly given me a great life and I am happier when I keep them. God is so good. I am so blessed by Him, He seems to always bless us more than we deserve. He always gives us way more than we put in. I think that's pretty darn awesome. I love Heavenly Father! I invite all y'all to see how you can follow a commandment more faithfully and see the blessings and happiness God will bring you! 

I love this gospel! I love Heavenly Father so very much and I love Jesus Christ more than I can express. I love my mission, I love the people here and I love the South (even with the tornados!) Love y'all, have a blessed week!

Love, Sister Crouch

Week 31: Squirrels are food, not friends.

Whoever said squirrels are cute and aren't scary are SO WRONG! They've never had a terrified squirrel run right for them! It's quite the adrenaline rush. So our friend Brandi in the branch has a hair salon and we asked if we could do some service for her at the shop. She said yes, so we went by friday to pick up the key to her shop so we can sweep and mop Saturday and she tells is theres a squirrel in her shop that loves the Christmas tree right by the front door! So of course me being me tells Brandi that not only will we sweep and mop but we'll attempt to help catch the squirrel...so much for that haha. Saturday comes around and we head the the shop. I unlock the door and step in and all the sudden I see the Christmas tree rattling. I immediately think "oh shoot." And all the sudden this wide-eyed little fur ball jumps out of the tree and on the wall!! Sister Johnson gets in and the squirrel is climbing behind the door, then gets on top of the door, THEN FALLS, and runs RIGHT FOR US! So we did the only sensible thing! We screamed! Screams of absolute terror! Well, we didn't see the squirrel after that, he sprinted to the cabinet and we never saw him again. But! We did get a text from Brandi yesterday saying we may be having squirrel for dinner! Sounds like someone finally caught him. welcome to the South!

This week was just amazing. We played Kickball on Wednesday for pday with the Waldrops and some other members of the branch and boy! It got intense. Let's just say all the adults (Including us missionaries) were pretty sore from the game...worth it! It was a lot of fun! But the most incredible thing happened after kickball.

Most of you know Will. He's been home this whole week before he goes back to the rig today, so you already know where we were each night this week! The progress Will has made has been incredible. Wednesday after kickball, we went over to finish off pday and have a lesson. We read Alma 36 with Will and man. I wish yall could've been there. The Spirit that filled that room was undeniable. It was a burning in my chest. As we testified of Jesus Christ and the Atonement He made, as I told Will how his boys came to trust God and Jesus Christ by being baptized, and as I expressed the love I have for him but more importantly the love God has for him, the Spirit just radiated. We went over last night and the same thing. We addressed his concerns, and as we testified, I had a burning in my chest. The Holy Ghost was testifying of the truthfulness of our words! And Will recognized it! He knew the gospel was true! He felt the Spirit bear witness of the truthfulness of the gospel! When I say that was the best night of my mission, I'm not just saying that. This week I've realized how much I love the Waldrop clan, including Will! All I want for them is the most joy our Heavenly Father has to offer them, and I know its through this gospel. My desire for Will to be baptized comes from my love for him and his family. Hes not a baptisimal statistic, not a name I get to write in my PMG, but a person I love and God loves. That's changed everything for me. I love this gospel! Will's really close friends! 

Last week I wrote about how out of tune I felt. I felt like I wasn't receiving any revelation, like the Heavens were closed to me. I had no idea what people needed, what I needed! But let me tell you, Heavenly Father is always talking to us. I've realized that this week. Ether 12:6 says we recieve no witness until after the trial of our faith. Well, I had that trial of faith for sure last week and God answerd me! He answers you! God is a god of light, of truth, of knowledge. He doesn't leave us confused, He doesn't leave us lost. Sometimes He'll let us struggle a little, but that doesn't mean He abandons us. He answers our prayers, He walks with us, He helps us in every aspect. Heavenly Father loves us, He loves YOU! 

This week marked 7 months on my mission. It's going ridiculously fast. It's been so hard. But seeing people come to know the truthfulness of this gospel is so worth it. I love this work, I love this gospel. I love Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father with my whole soul. I love yall!!

Love, Sister Crouch

1&2. Kickball!!!!

3. Please enjoy the video of our squirrel encounter. 

Week 30: Hermana Crouch takes on a Dog

The South is slowly making me hate all four-legged critters. Even dogs. Slowly but surely, my love for dogs (other than my own pups) is being driven into the ground. How sad is that?! But hear me out...we almost got attacked by a dog the other day! Thankfully we weren't bit, but we were darn close! It's actually kind of a funny story.

So Sister Johnson and I have branched out. We've been trying to find new people to teach in our good ol small town of Mendenhall and to do that, we've been walking around the neighborhood, talking to people in the streets and faith knocking. Faith knocking is just walking down a street and knocking any door that sticks out to us and seeing what happens. Well, we were walking down a street and all the sudden theres 2 real angry dogs in front of us. They weren't too happy we were so close to their house. So I pulled out my pepper spray just in case and just was holding it in my hand. We didn't feel like getting attacked so we walk around the corner to walk away (they were at a corner house) and guess who came back? But this time they were actually trying to bite and getting super close. Welp, sister Johnson took a huge L. As we're trying not to get bit, this dog gets real close to her and she just EATS IT! She falls flat! And I realized how terrible of a companion I am because I LAUGHED! This dog was bow about 1 foot away from her and I had my pepper spray unlocked and a second before I was going to spray, their owner calls them off! MIRACLES! But yeah it was rough haha. Thankfully their neighbor saw the whole thing and they told us to come in and share our message. MORE MIRACLES. It was just crazy! Safe to say, my love for dogs is just going away real fast.

We've had lots of miracles this week and the Lord has been involved in the details! One miracle happed last night! As most of you know, sister Glenn was the Spanish speaker of the companionship. And before that, it was Sister Strobelt. I picked up on a few things here and there, but I definitely couldn't truly speak it. Well, yesterday one of the Spanish investigators from forever ago calls us! I thought it was someone else and then he asks (in spanish) if we're missionaries and my heart drops because I dont know Spanish! Well, somehow I picked up on just enough to have the Lord make up the difference and I was able to have a full on (choppy and slow) conversation with him. He even wants to meet with us! Not sure if I'll be able to do that, but I'm an English speaking missionary who know knows that the Gift of Tongues is LEGIT. The Lord takes care of His people!

This week has been hard in all honesty. I've had a hard time feeling like the heavens have been open to me. I've had a hard time recognizing and receiving revelation from God. And I need it so much! It's made me a little discouraged honestly. Missionary work is hard. It stretches you spiritually and mentally and emotionally. There are trials all the time, external or internal. People reject you, people are stubborn, people know the truth but wont act on it. It can suck sometimes. But I shared this scripture with someone this week and its been what's given me strength this week. 3 Nephi 27:14 says "And my Father sent me that I might be lifted up upon the cross; and after that I had been lifted up upon the cross, that I might draw all men unto me, that as I have been lifted up by men even so should men be lifted up by the Father..." Christ is the reason missionary work isnt impossible! He's the reason life with hope IS possible! Hes able to lift us when we fall or when we're down because men lifted Him. Because our sins and sorrows lifted Him upon the cross and He willing partook of the bitter cup. I'm so grateful He did. Without Him, life wouldn't be full of joy, even with all my trials. He's the gift that never stops giving.

I love this gospel so much. I love my Savior Jesus Christ more than I can even express. I am grateful that because of Him we get new chances, 2nd and 3rd and infinite chances! What a beautiful thing to celebrate right after His birth! The gospel is true! I love yall and I pray all yall find the hope and joy of life through Christ. Happy New Year! 

Love,

Sister Crouch

1. Our cute friend Marley let us see her horse Ginger! I'm officially getting a horse when I get home

2. Sister Johnson and I won blankets Christmas day when we played dirty Santa at a member's house! Didn't know that was a game, but at least we wont something good!

3. New Years Eve with some of our favorite members!

4. You know, just getting soaked out here in Mississippi

5. The Fam.

6. No one I'd rather kick off this new year with