prAYEEEEE January 30, 2017

Hi, hello preparation day starts earlier now because of the whole
schedule change which is the greatest so good morning. We were told
about the schedule change a couple weeks ago at zone conference and
we're given the option if we wanted to start with the new schedule a
couple weeks ago or wait until they announced it so Sister Wallace and
I have actually been doing it for awhile now and it's great I love it.
Sometimes it's hard because as much change as a mission brings I am
still NOT a morning person so planning for the day can be hard but
it's worth it. A kind of sad thing happened this week so I will start
with that. We were teaching the Congo family. And just really trying
to help them understand the priesthood because they believe our church
is true but they don't think they need to be baptized again which is
contradictory. So we are teaching them and then Eli asks us what we
would do if we moved to a place where our church wasn't. What would we
do. Would we go to a different church? Which was the best question
EVER. And so we were able to first talk about missionary work and
building the church where we are and then they asked WHY we would do
that and we were able to teach and testify of the priesthood. And that
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is God's true church
on the earth today. It was awesome. And THEN Eli says to us that he
likes our church and he is going to keep going. But it is not his
church. And he will keep coming to our church while he tries to do
missionary work and start up his church here in America because it is
only in the Congo. And I wanted to DIE. Because that was the opposite
of what was supposed to happen. Then he told us he had to go to work
but asked us to come back next week. And so we had to leave right
after he said that. And I just cried and cried. Never before had I
felt the spirit so present in a lesson. It was the most clear and
direct lesson about the priesthood I have ever taught. AND THEY STILL
DIDN'T UNDERSTAND/ weren't listening. That night I thought and I
thought about how we could possibly know that Joseph Smith was THE
prophet and that the priesthood was restored to only him and I felt
the spirit so strong confirm to me that the only way we can know
anything is through prayer. Heavenly Father is the only one who knows
all and can tell all. Which, duh. But feeling the spirit confirms those
things we know and just makes it feel even better. This world... tumult of
opinion... pray people!!!
In other news we had a "fill the chapel" Sunday yesterday and it was
10/10, none of our investigators came, but it was still great. A lot of
less active members came, INCLUDING Angel who has been coming to
church more frequently since a little before I got here. It was a big
deal because she literally gave birth last week. I gave a talk on the
Sabbath day, afterward we had a potluck and I ate so much food... so
much.. there were waffles with bacon inside of them. Enough said.
Love you
Sister Madsen

This is all over the place but what part of my life isn't..January 23 2017

Not much has been going on this week which is always a bummer. We were able to talk to a lot of people though which is always good. Our bishop asked us why we aren't able to get lessons with our investigators in members homes and if he needed to talk to the members so they would help us out but we told him that it was because we don't really have anyone for them to teach in their homes right now so that was awkward. So finding more people to teach is our main focus right now/always. We are searching and praying for solid people. We met this guy Brett who became a new investigator and then a progressing investigator and then a former investigator all within the same week. Our third time seeing him he was waiting for us on his porch and he tried to give us back the Book of Mormon we gave him and he told us he didn't want to be recruited into our church 😑😑😑😑😑. Luckily he ended up keeping the Book of Mormon so SOMEDAY. Another thing that happened was that we were giving a church tour and are now repenting for lack of preparation for said church tour. We were with a man named Justin who is SUPER into the philosophies of men and one time spent a half hour trying to explain sacred geometry to us.. anyways his hard core Catholic mom referred him to us in hopes that we would be able to rekindle his faith in Heavenly Father. And nothing seemed to be working until we got him reading the Book of Mormon, he used to say he straight up wants a sign from Heavenly Father but since he has been reading his heart has started to soften which is sick. Anyways we were having a church tour with him. We go to the baptism font and turn on the lights and open it up and the whole room smells terrible and there is a couple of inches of black water in the font. I wanted to die!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! But he was chill about it. But still..

I was thinking about it and around this time last year I started reading the Book of Mormon and it has been cool to reflect on the things it has taught me and how I feel about it now vs how I felt about it then. I know that it is true, and that if we read our scriptures everyday, and actually read them and search them looking for answers, we will remain faithful member of Christ's church. We are able to have a better understanding of Heavenly Fathers plan for us, and a correct understanding of what is right and what is wrong while living in a time when that can seem turned around and more of a gray area. I have learned so much about and from the Book of Mormon and I continue to learn new things everyday. Because of the Book of Mormon I know that Heavenly Father is mindful of all his children. I know that those who died without hearing or accepting the gospel are given another chance. I know that the church has been restored and because of that I know that Heavenly Father continues to speak to us. I know more fully the Gospel of Jesus Christ and I am able to strengthen my relationship with Him and with those around me. I know that if you do not keep the commandments you WILL NOT prosper in the land

2 Nephi 32:3 

Wherefore, I said unto you, feast upon the words of Christ; for behold, the words of Christ will tell you all things what ye should do.

Read it.

📖Sister Madsen📖

P.s. The Congo family is good! We taught them about keeping the sabbath day holy and then asked them what they would change in order to keep it more holy and they said coming on time to church!!! I was so proud. And then they actually did it and I was even more proud 

We have interviews with President Griffin every transfer now and he told us he was coming to our apartment  and this was sister Wallace every time a car passed our apartment.

And exchanges happened! I went with Sister Ivie and Sister Wallace went with Sister Waters 

cold colds January 16, 2017

Another short one this week and I am sorry. A little bit. 

So first of all everyone has been losing their minds this week about an ice storm where it will be raining ice. Which I have learned is different than something most people would call "snowing". Essentially it rains. But it is so cold that upon hitting the ground it freezes making everything outside covered in ice. So whenever we are knocking on people's doors they are mystified as to why we are outside BC #1 ice #2 cold. And at first I was really confused as to why people wouldn't go outside because of the weather and they were acting all hopeless and like their lives were out of their control and they couldn't do anything because it was cold outside and I was so confused and thinking "WHO CARES" and then I remembered they aren't missionaries and don't have to be outside all the time and living a life where you aren't a missionary sounds really weird sometimes

Anyways we have woken up every day this week with disappointment because the ice storm never came and nothing looks frozen over. 

Second of all I am sick and so is sister Wallace. Which is terrible. TERRIBLE. We both got permission to take a nap on Saturday which means we missed a lesson with our Congo family. We weren't able to let them know because we don't have their phone number because we can't communicate with them BC French. So we always just stop by on Saturdays and have a lesson. But we couldn't this week. And then we were sitting at church on Sunday and they came!!!! Without us reminding them, and then the kids came up to us and asked us why we didn't come yesterday and I wanted to die. And then Bernadette, the mom, asked us as well and I really wanted to just lay down and die right then and there BC we were so lame and sick and useless. But they were really nice about it. We told them we are sick. My main mode of communication with them is either saying "good" or "no good" so I told Bernadette "I felt no good" while frowning and rubbing my tummy. To which she replied, "ah, no good.." so I am pretty sure she understood. And sister Wallace told the kids that I was sleeping and they all died of laughter and weren't mad. They are so nice. It's always nice when things are more stressful in your head than they are in real life. Which pretty much sums up what these last 11 months have been like. Along with a lot of other things. I dunno guys, missions are great. Words cannot describe. I'm really sick. I'm ready to see some miracles in Galesburg. I'll tell you about them next week!

Sister Madsen  

I guess I haven't even sent a picture of sister Wallace and I?? She is great. Here is a live-action-just-taken picture of the two of us sickos emailing 

Diversity Day January 9th, 2017

Hola bonjour hello. A cool thing that happened this week was that we
had fast and testimony meeting and there were testimonies given in
French Spanish and English and it was just beautiful. I love when
people are different. I love that the gospel works no matter who you
are or where you are from, and that people can still be different and
have different opinions and backgrounds but we can all find a common
ground in our testimonies of the Savior. Diversity or die people. It
is my favorite. When I was filling out my papers I didn't really care
where I went because I knew there was going to be people everywhere
and it's just cool that I can be in the middle of no where Illinois
and am able to meet so many different people. One of the Congo
families that we taught this week was very sweet, the parents don't
speak English but the little kids were able to translate for us. We
were talking about serving God and putting him first and everything
else will fall into place and read some scriptures from the Book of
Mormon. We had them take turns reading the last section of 3 Nephi 13
and afterward the mom just looked at us and smiled and said "amen" it
was so sweet and the spirit was in the room and it's just nice to be
able to feel people's testimonies without words and it helped build my
testimony of simplicity and purity. That we don't need eloquence or
beautifully worded prayers and testimonies. We need real ones and true
ones. Christ doesn't care how much faith we have, it can be the size
of a mustard seed, if it is genuine it is enough

🌎Sœur Madsen🌍

Sister Turner and I aren't even companions anymore but with the amount
of pictures we take you think we would be. When I see her I keep
thinking it will be the last time I see her and so we take pictures
and then later I realize that I will see her again. But for your
viewing pleasure I will send them anyway

I lived. Notice the -13 windchill, and we are in the warm part of the mission

Bonjour! January 2, 2017

Well I am no longer an Hermana but I am whatever you call a sister in
French! Galesburg is great and I love it. It is kind of like a larger
Freeport in that the first person I talked to when I got here offered
us drugs 😶 haha it's great. There is a big community of people that
have come here from the Congo and we are teaching two families from it
and they are so cool and nice. But they speak very very little English
and a whole lotta French! So it is hard to talk to them sometimes, but
we have a family that got baptized about 6 years ago and so they come
to our lessons and translate for us!! They are great. There is a meat
packing factory called FarmLand that brings a lot of people in from
the Congo and gives them jobs at their factory so that's why there are
so many here. One of the families we are teaching knew the family that
are members back when they both lived in the Congo so that is cool!
And the Father of the other family has a brother back in the Congo who
is in the bishopric in one of the wards out there!! So cool.if that
made any sense.. They are very fun to teach. We also teach English
class twice a week to them and a lot of their neighbors as well so
that is cool! That was probably my favorite thing that we have done so
far, it is a really cool experience. Also English is terrible and hard
to explain.
I hope you all had a good New Years and went to church! What better
way to start off 2017 than at church? There was a great talk given at
sacrament about how YES actually you can change. Even if you don't
keep your resolutions it doesn't mean it's over. Every day can be the
beginning of the new year. I don't know really what I am saying right
now. Make your yearly goals, but take them one day at a time I think
is what I am trying to get at.
Sister Wallace is great! She's breaking the mold and is my first
companion to have come out here from California! She is cool
Don't let ur dreams be dreams
Sister Madsen
Also sorry this email is short and terrible.

First off are pictures of Freeports classy art museum

Good bye to Amber!! And Judy! And I saw Keynora and Roschea before I
left as well as Darien

 Show original message

This is probably the last picture I will take with sister smith for a
long time which is rude. But the four of us got to ride together on
the transfer van for a lil

start spreading the news December 27, 2016

I'm leavin today

Well this week has been a rollercoaster! I love Freeport so much. I've
felt like I'm having a farewell all over again!! Everyone is too good
and I'm so happy I got to be here for the holidays because this place
feels like it's own little home to me, and I am sad to leave but I'll
be back.
Christmas was amazing, so many blessings we received and had the
chance to see other people receive as well. The members of Freeport
definitely look out for each other and their missionaries. Everyone
has been here so long it is like family. For Christmas a lot of the
kids from families that still live here came and spent Christmas in
Freeport and then sang in the Christmas program. It was beautiful and
nice to see the chapel so full :)
Normally I would write a long list of the things I'll miss for
Freeport but I think if I do that now I'll cry so I'm not going to.
There are so many funny and crazy and beautiful quirks to this town
but the thing I will miss the most is the people. The grannies and the
Christian rappers and the farmers and all the people we see walking
the streets all the time. The people who tell us god bless and shout
from their porches and the ones that let us right in and the ones that
open their door an inch and the ones who are staring at us out of a
sliver of their blinds as soon as we pull up to the street. And the
WARD MEMBERS. SISTER CORBETT.???? Oh man.. Holy cow. Just everyone
really. They don't even know me but I will miss them all! And that is
what a mission is about. The people. We are to serve God with all our
heart might mind and strength and when you are in the service of your
fellow being you are only in the service of your God. There was a
quote I read by c.s. Lewis about how charity is only charity if it
inconveniences you or prevents you from doing something. In the
question of how much should we give to people the only safe answer is
to give more than we can spare. You know what I am just going to find
the quote really quick, ok here "I am afraid the only safe rule is to
give more than we can spare. … If our charities do not at all pinch or
hamper us, … they are too small. There ought to be things we should
like to do and cannot do because our charitable expenditure excludes
them." We show our love for Heavenly Father and for his Son by giving
them something of inconvenience or that stops us from doing something
we would want to do. Whether it be 18 months or 24 or 10% of your
income or obedience to a commandment you struggle with or your whole
entire life and will given to God. I can't remember if I talked about
this last week so I will talk about it now. Our mission president
invited each of us to think of a gift that we could give away to our
Savior the Christmas (or New Years;) season something that we can
promise him to either stop or start doing. God so loved the world that
He gave his only Begotten Son, what can we give to him?
I love you ALL and wish you a merry Christmas and a happy new year

Sister Madsen

PS I am going to Galesburg in Peoria and serving with Sister Wallace ✌🏼

This sums up our companionship.
Udderly Adorable

Sister Merkle who I love and sister Corbett with her favorite Christmas gift