This week was amazing, finally!!!!

First off, this week was amazing!

The first week of doing it all wrong has kind of passed. :)

I am finally getting the hang of things!! YAY! Ha ha

Monday: P-day! Thank goodness! BTW, we barely had time to grocery shop. The time goes so quick! But our zone does sports together. Sports+California+weather= HEAVEN!

Tuesday: We knocked pretty much all day. I dreaded it, but I got SO much better. :) I can almost say the entire restoration at the door. That is HUGE for me. We have a crazy rich area, walking up to the giant mansions is intimidating, then trying to explain the gospel to successful doctors and lawyers is well, crazy, ha ha.  In our ward we have met an actor- He was in the goonies, the Dad in the Glass House (Yes, Hailee, the one on lifetime!!!) :) He also plays in SVU and Castle. We taught him today and I asked him a million questions.  Then we had dinner with the bodyguard that was in charge of Hilary Clinton during the whole CLINTON scandal. I think he also worked with Bush. He's the first counselor in the bishopric.  Then we had a lesson with the Weeks. He plays the base for Panik at the Disco. Call me crazy, but I have never heard of them. haha oops!!

Wednesday: We knocked all day again. Hah, I am improving still. :) We had dinner with the Sharps. I have never eaten so much ice cream in my entire life-and they had horses, pigs, and chickens. HEAVEN AGAIN!  We also taught mutual. I LOVED it. Of course it was nothing like our Young Womens group at home. It was weird looking out and seeing different girls, (lol), but it was super spiritual.  I wish we could go every week.  Love, love, loved it. :))

We met with the Rogers family after that. It was such a spiritual lesson. There were tears-haha. We set a date for baptism!! :))))

Thursday: Ian said YES to baptism (on the 22nd of Feb.!!) He walked outside to where we meet for lessons with a pack of cigarettes and asked if we minded if he smoked.  lol.  I think I gave him one of those, really, what do you think, looks. Because before anything else was said, he looked at me and said...uh, I think I will wait. :) He is recovering from a drug addiction.  I love meeting with him, he is so strong and wants the gospel in his life so bad!  We had dinner with a family named Shigokas! The wife is from Holland and the husband is from Japan. We had white rice.  haha. The daughter said they have it every night. The daughter is in her 30's and usually is strictly against the church, but we really connected with her. We are watching the movie “the Testaments” with her on Monday!  She called and said she is inviting her friends!  Brother Shigoka talked a lot about representing who you are. He said, “each day we need to improve our shining moment."  I LOVE that.  Each day we just need to be a little bit better than the day before.   Their son is schizophrenic (holy spelling).  They deal with a lot, but they are so happy and inspirational, such a neat experience!!!

Friday:  The focus of this ward is missionary work with part member/less active families. There are four families that we visited today where the mom is active and the Dad is either less active or not a member.  This one family really reminds me of home. (btw-sorry for always making it so hard on you growing up mom! ;)  The dad is hilarious! They were all so surprised that I could hold my own with them- I guess the years of being "picked" on have paid off.   Ha ha.   Love you Dad!!

Saturday: We knocked practically all day. We had an appt that afternoon with Daniel.  He invited his girl friend to the lesson...missionary DREAM.  Daniel takes care of his grandma that has cancer.  He is incredible! We invited them to be baptized. :)  Then we met with Mike, he is pretty much the coolest man ever.  He rents a room in a little house, so we were sitting on his bed/couch teaching him. He's a war vet and has some pretty amazing stories with some challenging struggles.  He is amazing!  He came to church Sunday.  He has such a HUGE heart!!  Then we met with another Mike (there are four Mikes we are teaching) His wife cheated on him and he's jobless and about to lose his house. It was another great spiritual lesson. Definitely a testimony builder on faith and hope!

Sunday:  We spoke in church, taught gospel principles and relief society.  Fear of public speaking = gone.  lol!  The ward is SO excited to have sister missionaries!  In sacrament meeting, we kind of didn't have enough time to prepare a talk, so I just went with it.  I talked about my first time ever knocking on a door.  I was so confident when I knocked, but when the door opened, all I could get out was "Hi, I am sister Hancock and we are...we are...we are um..." ha ha! They laughed, I was so nervous.  I related it to Elder Holland’s talk/ quote, " We have to be bolder, bigger and better than we have ever been."

It isn't always going to be easy and doesn't always come out, but God will not let us fail.  The hearts of men have been prepared. Missionary work is hastening. It is time to forget the hastening and get to work.  Ha ha :)  We went to dinner with the Low Family. They made homemade Gluten Free bread, cookies and pizza. HEAVEN. Everyone takes such good care of us. :))

Overall, I LOVE it! It is NOT easy!  I have learned a TON. I have been humbled and learned how to obey with EXACTNESS!  Oh, and be teachable. My poor trainer.

My companion is amazing. She is such a great example. She has taught me that there is always room to improve. This morning we woke up at 6:32, instead of 6:30.   She asked me to ask for forgiveness during morning prayer.  My face was like, ah...really? Then she explained that it is black and white, there is no gray.   Exact obedience brings miracles. :)) I am a work in progress. Oh yes, and I am learning that EVERY LITTLE BIT COUNTS/ :))

I am starting to accept and adjust to this lifestyle!  My relationship with my Heavenly Father is stronger than EVER!  He lives and loves each one of us. We have a purpose. The power of prayer is REAL.

Overall, I love it here!!  The work is hard but rewarding! Our ward is amazing and the weather is perfect.

Mail comes every day at  6. I am kind of selfish, but I look forward to it everyday!!

Send letters please, it takes about 6 days for me to actually get them.

I LOVE YOU ALL!   I MISS YOU!!

I can email friends. :) But not much time!!

Real mail is the best!!

LOVE SISTER HANCOCK!

Survived my 1st Week in the Field!

Wow, I can't believe it's been almost 3 weeks.  I survived my first full week "out in the field", and you haven't gotten a call saying I'm coming home yet!!! Ha ha.  I was called to the Simi Valley 5th ward.  It's a very affluent area, or so I was told, ha ha.  But really, the homes are huge, it's a little intimidating and everyone is blonde! So here was my week.

Tuesday:  I met my companion.  Her name is Sister Maure.  She's from Texas, but was raised in Mexico until she was 12.  We are sharing the apt with the Hermana's.  In order to help them learn Spanish, we speak mostly Spanish.  It's awesome.  So, our bishop and his wife picked us up , we went to eat, then moved in.  We are the first Sister Missionaries in Simi Valley in 15 + years.  Everyone is soooo excited to have us, it's amazing.  We were white washed in.  Usually a new companion is transferred with one that's been in the area so they know all the ropes, but when you're white washed, you are both new to the area.  Since we are both new and the first sisters they're calling it a "PINK-WASH"… It's been challenging because the Elder's didn't keep the area book updated, so we have been trying to figure it all out!

Wednesday:  Wake-up at 6am.  PUKE!  I will never complain about being up for work at 8 or school at 9 ever again.  Today was my first day knocking on doors.  My trainer said I was really good at relating to people and a natural teacher, she is just being nice I think.  It was AWFUL.  I never thought I would be one of those annoying people that knock on doors.  When they say "no", I want to say ok, have a nice day, but my companion is trying to teach me to be persistent and stay focused.  I guess I ask too much about them and not about the gospel!  Oops.  Annoying people is hard work!  That night we ate at a members home (by the way, we get fed every night.  We have to turn people down sometimes.  So no worries about me losing weight)  Anyway, the sister made the best GLUTEN free dessert.  I was in heaven!

Thursday:  Zone and District meeting.  So much fun.  I have the best district.  Then more knocking and we met with the ward mission leader to figure out who was who.  This ward is amazing at missionary work.  We have lists of people.  Mostly part member families and less active families, which means less knocking. Whooo!  I have really learned to love the people.  It's probably not always correct, but I like learning and getting to know them before we start right in with the restoration.  We have lots of goals, which sometimes discourages me.  There's also a ton of rules I did not know about.  Humility and obedience, 2 of the hardest lessons for me to learn.  I have been doing great with them both, although it hasn't been easy.

Friday:  More knocking.  There is a guy we see that reminds me of someone at home.  He has 2 girlfriends.  One in KS, who is LDS and homeless, that's why he is meeting with us, and one who lives in CO.  He is awesome.  

Saturday:  Stake Conference.  President Castro spoke.  He is very strict and soft spoken, but he knows each of us by name.  You can feel the love they have for us.  Sister Castro is amazing too.  I respect them so much that it makes it easier to follow the crazy rules.  The first thing my companion said to me is, "I am 100% obedient".  We are all human and we all will fall short, so I strive for 110% obedience, then when I fall short, I am at 100%.  It was at that moment that I knew I was in trouble!

Sunday:  Stake Conference was awesome.  It was a broadcast with President Eyring speaking.  He spoke about PIMA, AZ.  It was weird because we still knock on Sundays.  We work all day, so no Sunday naps………….

I have seen the miracles and blessings that obedience has brought.  I really do love it.  It's not always easy and there are times where I feel like I am doing it all wrong, but nobody said it was easy.  Each day I learn something new.  The people are amazing.  There's so much love.  I miss everyone at home!  But  I 100% believe this decision is blessing my family as much as it is me, and those who I am serving.  Someone gave a talk and said, "You are serving the Lord's people, so he is taking care of my people."

Our mission motto is:

In the Great California Mission we:

1-Baptize

2-Obey with exactness

3-Seek to be trusted more than loved

4-Teach with power and authority

Please everyone write and don't forget about me!!!!!!!!

Love you, Sister Hancock

I am finally here!!

Welcome to the missionary blog for Sister Marissa Hancock.  You will be able to share in her mission experience in the California-Ventura Mission.  Please come back often to read about her experiences and to see pictures of her mission.

Well after a short stay at the MTC in Provo, I have finally settled at the California-Ventura Mission.  I entered the MTC on January 1, 2014.  What a way to start off the new year.  Saying good-bye to family and friends was a little teary, I have to admit.  Although I had a few bumps along the way in the MTC, things are good.   Challenges  and trials come in all shapes and sizes, it's learning how to deal with each one that makes you a better person.

I am loving the California weather.  Although anything would be an improvement over Idaho weather.  Rexburg is not the choicest spot to be in the winter time, although the campus is beautiful covered in snow.  I learned so much from my experience at the MTC, even if it wasn't all classroom learning.  Driving in California has been my latest challenge.  As many of you know, driving and directions is not my strong point.  I think I will be requesting a GPS in the next care package from home.  I love my new ward, although it's not Wickenburg, it is great.  It is the Simi Valley 5th Ward.  The people are super friendly and make us feel at home.   I am getting to speak a ton of Spanish, and that really makes me happy.  I know my Heavenly Father loves me!  He lives!  I have felt the spirit so strong and have really seen the Lord's hand in my life!