Sister Tanner's Mission Blog: Staying in "STALLIS"

Sister Tanner had yet another amazing week! "What a fantastic week it has been", she said. "Truly a week of miracles and blessings, and now sunshine".

The Sisters decided to forgo their usual sports activities on Monday for some much needed girl time. They enjoyed a wonderful lunch, and a fun trip to Target! They spent their down time baking cookies for families in the ward. Sister Tanner loves bringing treats to the members! That night, the Sisters had dinner with a family in the ward. They were able to teach them a lesson, which went very well! "We've been sharing the story of Abinadi with a lot of our members and they loved it, and had an "ah-ha" moment that they need to get out in the community to meet new friends they can share the gospel with. I think this is a huge problem for most members of the Church. Lots of members only hangout with and spend their time with other members, but we need to get out in the world and in our communities so that we can help them come into the gospel. We can live in the world, but not of the world", Sister Tanner said. She encourages everyone to be missionaries in their every day life, and to befriend everyone they meet!

Girl Day P-day

Companions and Best Friends

Tuesday was Training for the South Milwaukee Zone. They recently split the South Milwaukee Zone into 2, because it was so big! So now the Zone is quite smaller. "Our zone is pretty small now", Sister Tanner said. "But it's great because we feel like a family. I love all the Elders and Sisters in my Zone. There are some really great Missionaries out here! I have so much to learn from them". The training was amazing, and Sister Tanner received revelation about one of her investigators and was inspired for her area! After the training, the entire Zone went out for lunch together, since one of the Elders goes home this Wednesday!

After the Sisters returned from their training, they had a lesson at the library with a man they had met months ago! Sister Tanner had met him while teaching someone else, and gave him a mormon.org card. Now months later, he called! He wanted to know the Church times for Sunday, and so the Sisters invited him to meet with them! "He has a strong desire to change his life around and follow Christ", Sister Tanner said. How amazing!

"Wednesday was the best day ever", Sister Tanner exclaimed! Her and Sister King both felt very prompted to go to 80th street to tract. As they were tracting, nothing seemed to be coming from it. They started to feel a bit confused and discouraged. Then out of nowhere, two girls came walking outside to their cars, so the Sisters went to go talk to them! One of the girls seemed so excited to see them. She said, "OMG I've been wanting to learn about you guys"! The Sisters were able to talk to the girls for awhile, and right after they left they even received a text from one of the girls! She said, "Still in shock I met you girls"! How amazing that Sister Tanner and Sister King could have such a positive impact on these young girls! Their light and spirit is contagious! "I know the Lord led us to 80th street to meet her. We are excited to start teaching her this week", Sister Tanner said. What a miracle! After their day of tracting, the Sisters had dinner and a lesson with one of their investigators! Sister Tanner has been so excited for this night, and it couldn't have gone any more perfect! "She is so cute! She made us the best dinner ever, and we had fun getting to know her. She has so many experiences the past couple months of getting her prayers answered, she knows all of them have led her to Church. She's the most prepared person I've ever met and probably ever will meet. We taught the Restoration and she kept asking questions that would literally be the next thing we were leading into. We asked her to read and pray about the Book of Mormon so she could know for herself that it's true", Sister Tanner said. She is so excited for her, and knows she will be baptized soon! She is so prepared and ready to accept the gospel into her life!

Thursday was a busy day filled with lots of appointments! Sister Tanner had a wonderful lesson with one of the less active members she has been working with! "It was a miracle", Sister Tanner said. "He's totally getting closer and closer to coming back to Church after 30 years". How amazing! The Sisters ended their day with a wonderful dinner with a fun family! They loved hearing all about the husband's mission he served in New York! He had a lot of fun stories to tell!

Sister Tanner attended a 12 week training meeting for her companion, Sister King. President Cutler's training was amazing! "You could really tell that his whole focus is to help us become converted ourselves, so that we can not only be effective missionaries, but go home after our missions to be effective members of the Church", Sister Tanner said. What a remarkable way to look at Missionary work. It's not just for 18 months or 2 years, but for a lifetime. The skills you learn on your Mission will help you to be a forever missionary! Sister Tanner was so proud of her companion, Sister King. She has become such an amazing missionary in such a short time. "The meeting made me realize how lucky I am to be companions with Sister King. We did a bunch of role-plays with other Sisters, and Sister King already knows what she's doing. I felt so proud! I wanted to scream, 'That's my companion'! I love her", Sister Tanner said. What a dynamic duo these Sister Missionaries are! They enjoyed telling all their crazy "bus stories" to the other Sisters who drive cars. "I already have a ton of 'mission stories' that I will tell the rest of my life", Sister Tanner said. We cannot wait to hear them all! That night at dinner, Sister Tanner and Sister King taught a fun lesson about Lehi's dream to about 10 little kids! She had so much fun, and the kids all loved it!

The transfer text was sent out on Saturday! Sister Tanner will be staying in West Allis along with Sister King! "STALLIS", Sister Tanner exclaimed! That is the Sister's nickname for the city that they have come to love so much! Sister Tanner is so happy, and excited for all the great things that will happen during this transfer! After hearing the great news, the Sisters had another lesson with their investigator from the library. Sister Tanner taught him about the Restoration. It went amazing! He is already praying about when he wants to be baptized! Later in the day they met a man at a gas station. Sister Tanner knows that she was supposed to talk with him! It ended up that he has cancer, and is currently going through chemotherapy. Sister Tanner knew his spirits were low, so she shared a short but sweet message with him. They ended by all praying together. He told them thank you, and how much he needed that! The spirit definitely led them to this man! "We decided that gas station contacting is GREAT", Sister Tanner said!

Matching PJs

"Sunday was great like always", Sister Tanner said. Their investigator whom they have been teaching at the library came to church! Sister Tanner was so excited to have him there! All of the talks in church were about missionary work! Sister Tanner loved the following quotes from the talks she heard.
"Sharing the gospel is not about mastering the facts, it's about mastering discipleship."
"Missionary work is not something we do, it's what and who we are."

Sister Tanner had an amazing week! It is so incredible to hear about the lives she is changing, by bringing them into the gospel. She truly is shining through Christ's light! We all feel the blessings in our lives from her service. What an example she is to every single one of us!

Sister Tanner's Testimony

"I love every minute of this work. The Lord is blessing us tremendously for our hard work and mighty prayers. Miracles are real. I am so grateful for my mission and for the person I've become and will become because of it. I've been thinking a lot lately how much I've changed in the past year because of my decision to serve and everything I've learned while I've been here in Wisconsin. That is what the gospel is about, CHANGE. I've always been one to hate change, because it's a hard thing but it's the most rewarding when we change for the better. Every day as a missionary, we are trying to help people change for the better as they embrace the gospel and in turn, I've seen the biggest change in myself. I'm so grateful for Heavenly Father leading me here and allowing me to have the experiences and learn the things I have to bring about this big change. I love you all so much! I am so grateful for your never-ending support and love and prayers for me!"

-Sister Karlie Marie Tanner

Fun Photos from January and February