2 Months Out!

Ah! TWO MONTHS! I know right? Crazy to me! In two weeks I won't be the newbie anymore, There will be other newer missionaries! So fun! Oh dear, I just LOVE being a missionary! How in the world can I tell you everything that goes on here?? There is so much! The Visitors Center is like CHaos but crazy awesome chaos! :) I love it. So our whole goal the whole time is to get referalls from all the people there We have millions of those cards, and our goal is to talk to everyone and get people to fill them out with a referall for us to call after christmas lights,  it's so awesome, helping people and talking to SO many different varieties of people! I love helping others see the joy of missionary work!

My area is doing really good considering the fact that we have little to NO time in the area. Aw it frustrates me, but I know the Lord consecrates our area for the good that we are doing during the lights. We just have one for sure baptism this month but I am really really really banking on having two, possibly three! That would be Romina (for sure) and her husband Marcelo,(I HOPE HOPE HOPE) and maybe Patsy. We're working on her. For more infor on Romina and Marcelo and their awesomeness read lisa's email. :)  I am so excited. I feel like that is THE best Christmas present that I can both give to the Lord and receive as a missionary. SO wonderful. I love the joy I feel when teaching the Lords prepared people. Please keep these three in your prayers. We have others that we are working with and teaching but those are the only ones I think will be ready by the end of this year.

Oh and Sister Hansen and I will be spending Christmas day with Romina and Marcelo! :) :) They invited us, and I am Stoked! Going to be the best day ever, after they both recieve The Gift of The Holy Ghost on Christmas day! Aw so choice! 

 I love you ALL so much! Hugs and Kisses from afar,

LOVE Sister Shurtz

Monday November 28th

My thanksgiving was absolutely fantastic!  my comp and I went over to the Barba famlies house and had Thanksgiving dinner there. Frank Barba is our WML for one of our wards. He is great and their fam is always doing missionary work! They had tons of people over!- Even some Less Actives! So that was good. We ate at noon and then left to the VC for more pie and goodies and then got pictures with all the VC sisters. We then had our huge Christmas lights prep mtg. It was really a good day. :) Thank you again so much for the Package it was just so so fun to get! I loved also the CUTE CUTE CUTE turkey package and card! Love them and they are hanging up on my wall! loved the leaves :) thank you! hope you are having a wonderful life! haha okay so funny fact.. I am like super talkative and active in sleep these days! Apparently I love being a missionary and teaching so much that I even do it in my sleep! Haha Sister Hansen says that I am teaching lessons nightly in sleep- Ha I feel bad.. But she said she is learning alot! hahahaha. I also said a full prayer out loud in my sleep and woke up when sister Hansen said AMEN at the end.. Ha it was so weird for me. I have been getting up at random times in the night and making my bed and saying my prayers and then realizing that it's like 1:30 am and get back in bed and go back to sleep. I did that twice last night! Oh dear... I'm losing it! :)

The work is going well here! Our cute Argentine investigator Romina is progressing soooo well! I am loving the joy that I feel from seeing her make and keep committments and go above and beyond what sister hansen and I have even taught her!! we are hoping that her husband marcelo will be baptized with her on the 21st!!! Please pray for them and especiallly for him!

Gotta go! LOVES!!! :)

Sister Shurtz 

Address!!

Another reminder, this is Sister Michelle Shurtz's address!

Sister Michelle Lillie Shurtz
Arizona Mesa Mission 
6265 N 82nd Street
Scottsdale Arizona, 85250


This address will be used throughout
her entire mission for letters and packages

Email from Sister Shurtz Nov. 7th!

Dearest Family and Friends!

I am here in the Mesa AZ mission! I LOVE it! It is warm (slightly cool) and beautiful! I never pictured it being this beautiful! There are palm trees and gorgeous flourescent Pinkish Fusciaish ccolored flowers everywhere! It's like Hawaii only just a tad less green.. Haha anyway I love it.

My new compaion/trainer is...............Drum Roll Please............... Sister Stacey-Marie Hansen! Haha. She is so cute and super sweet. She was my exchanges comp the first day and she told me that she was hoping so bad that she would get to train me. When we found out in the meeting the next day that we were companions, She jumped me and wrapped me in a huge giant hug, Ha I almost fell over, and everyone was laughing. Sister Hansen has been out in the mission field 10 months now. She is very dedicated, and obedient. She is always working hard and is bold and willing to talk to and stop to pray and read a scripture with anyone and everyone! I need to be more like her in that way. Which is probably why I'm with her! :) I am working on it. She is a very happy person, and really tries hard not to complain.

Sister Hansen and I are on BIKES!! The first day I rode in a car, but the next day, the assistants to the president asked us for our car keys and told us that we were going to be on bikes from then on! I was thinking YES!!!!!! It took forever that day to coordinate with members and the zone leaders to find two bikes, two helmets and a lock! We did find some too. I am so blessed. I thought I would have to buy one for sure. The Lord provides for His missionaries. It has been fun to be on bikes! Especially in the winter. It is perfect weather right now, and it's so much fun being out and riding around, and it gives us more opportunity to stop and talk to people. Although were are having a really hard time figuring out timing and schedules right now. It's hard to know how much time to plan for to get places and our time in the mission feild is already cut short with being in the VC (Visitors Center) part of the day. It is really crazy, being  in the VC and proselyting. We are expected to cover the same amount of area in proselyting and tracting as full feild missionaries and we have the same responsibilities and everything as full feild missionaries, but we have to be at the VC for three to six hours each day too! It's really hard! Sister Hansen just got done being a full field missionary for 4 and a half months. And she has just been telling me over and over that being in the VC and doing proselyting is SOOO much harder. The Lord really trusts us with alot as VC missionaries. We have alot of extra responsibilties and paperwork and EXTRA MISSIONARY WORK! YAYYYY!!!! :) I don't know anything else so i'm doing great. Its fun being a missionary and serving people! Sister Hansen said that she has seen that the areas of the VC missionaries are blessed and consecrated by the Lord because He knows that we can't spend as much time in our areas as other missionaries can, so he prospers our areas and makes it so the work will go forth! :)

Monday is P-day. I can only write and email on P-days. With Christmas lights and all that fun craziness going on we sometimes don't get P-days and if we do get them then they are way shorter. Just an FYI. Christmas lights and concerts start Nov. 24 - Jan 1. I can't wait! I am in an apt. with just sis Hansen. I have my own closet and my own bathroom! our apt is cute and roomy! :) :) :)

Thank you all for your love and prayers! time is up!

LOVE YOU!

~SIster Shurtz

November 6th!!

Dear Family,

So much has happened here! I can't believe I have been here for 3 1/2 weeks! Our whole district left for Washington DC South, so my companionship is now a Trio! I am now with Sister Bowser and Sister K.  Both sisters are 23 and have very similar  stores as to why they are now out on a mission.  We are all getting along great which is a blessing since we have so much other chaos going on!! We are now in our Visitor Center Training with only sisters!   Let me say... It is a lot more dramatic!!  We went to Temple Square earlier than we thought, we went as guests and just toured ans watched and learned.  My testimony of visitors centers is growing so much- this calling to teach in a visitors center is so special- I'm learning that!!  I was able to go to the temple which makes my week so much better!! I felt so exhausted and overwhelmed. There is so much to teaching in a visitors center!! A whole new style of interacting and teaching! We are also learning how to take calls and how to do online chat- which I LOVE!! With this system I have the opportunity to not only teach people in Mesa Arizona, but I can teach anyone- people in Africa, Germany ect... It is incredipble and really works!!  Sister K and I are teaching a lady named Kim who is now interested in reading the BOM and is going to have the missionaries come teach her!
When teaching in homes you teach longer and full lessons and you have the opportunity to show your love for those investigators over a period of time.  In the visitors center first impressions are more vital- Love and happiness must be radiating from you and you have very little time to figure out the persons needs before you give them a tour.  We teach short and powerful principles of truth, everything you say is critical.  I am so amazed that the Lord is allowing me so much variety and learning in his calling to me.  I will be able to teach the gospel through almost every way possible!! Through the internet, online chat, phone calls, visitors centers and through street contacting! I am in awe of my calling and responsibility!!
I see Sister Taggart all of the time-we are in the same residence hall and get ready together in the mornings- Its so fun to see her and she likes seeing me, because I am a piece of home and she can be herself around me! She is doing awesome- but needs prayers, Spanish is hard!!
I am sad to leave this blessed place, I was interviewed by my branch president today and he asked me how I liked the MTC.  I just went on and on about how much I have loved it and how much I have learned and grown while here. I am going to truly feel the difference when I leave.  Never again will I feel this and experience this learning to the degree that I have here at the MTC.  All of us here are striving in every way to improve and perfect ourselves so we can more fully serve the Lord when we go out into the world once more.  I am ecstatic to get out there and put to use all that I've been learning and practicing here! I love you all very much!!

Love Always,

Sister Shurtz!

Summary of Oct. 22nd Letter

Thank you so much for your letters and your prayers- I know that the Lord is watching over me partly because of your prayers on my behalf.  My companion, Sister Kranendonk, is from Salt Lake City and is 5'8" and has Auburnish Red Hair, She is gorgeous! We already have plans to do things after the mission together- she like to hike so we want to do Zions and the St. George Temple together when we get back!! For exercise we job in the gym at the MTC. I think that we can jog outside on campus- but my comp prefers the track in the gym, so that's what we do.  It is hard though to get a good workout though because our district gym times are scheduled right after breakfast lunch or dinner!! So we are always full when we go to work out.  I have gone to the temple! And I am going again with my district today! I'm so excited!!! The temple is so wonderful in this time of stress and mix of emotion- i picks me up and keeps my mind clear and uncluttered from stress!! I would love to have the opportunity to ask any question in the temple with a general authority, although I don't feel I'll haven't hat opportunity at least here in the MTC- there are thousand of missionaries here.  But I have thought of some questions just in case!!
Guess who came and spoke at the devotional that we just had? Elder Richard G. Scott! The spirit in the room could almost be cut with a knife, it was that tangible! He talked a lot about sister missionaries and told the Elders to watch us and teach like us.  Elder Scott also talked a lot about writing down impressions that we receive and keeping them with us always so that we can reflect on them in time of need- he is really big on that.  He then expressed love for all of us in such a way that not one person could deny the beautiful feeling they felt of deep overwhelming love- WONDERFUL!!!
Teaching investigators here is so awesome! We have TRC's these are people that come and are either new coverts living their life before they were converted and role play with us.  Some of the TRC's actually real investigators.   We role played it out exactly like we would if we were knocking on an investigators door.
Sister K and I got to teach Lawanna, her story blows me away.  She grew up on the streets and buried her own mom- she grew up in a house where her mom sold drugs and she never knew her father.  Lawanna soled drugs and was living with someone.  She was in and out of foster homes until age 15 when she ran away.  The missionaries met her right after she buried her mom.  She is a member of the church now and has still dealt with adversity- her sister committed suicide, she feel away, but realized she wasn't happy and came back to the church and has been strong ever since.  We have had an opportunity to be her friend and show her that we really care about her, love her and are praying for her.  The meant a lot to her because she has never been loved and cared for or given hugs or anything in her past and she is just now learning to say I Love You and give hugs and depend on others. She said the first people that ever showed her true love were the missionaries that helped convert her.  She said she was receptive because they were so patient and loving and never gave up on her.  Through the role plays with Lawanna we have been inspired to teach her lessons that the Lord wants her to hear, to help her truly understand the Atonement and the Love of our Heavenly Father.  We have a deep connection with here and have exchanged information so we can keep in touch with her.  Missionaries are not just for investigators but for members too!! I have felt Gods love for his children over and over in the MTC.  I have especially felt Gods love for me here it is amazing that as many times as I have gotten down on myself in feeling so inadequate because of the Lord showing me my weaknesses- He also always builds me up and lets me know he is proud of me and lets me feel joy in the work I am doing my best to do for Him.
Sister Rosenvall, my instructor, is my role model!! I want so badly to be liker her and teach with the power and conviction that she does!! One days he pulled Sister K and I into a room and just let us know how proud she was of us.  She told us that we were doing amazing as missionaries and that all the teachers here in the MTC that have heard Sister K and I teach say that we teach as though we are already return missionaries. She said that is the first time she has ever heard that said about missionaries in the MTC!  I leave the MTC on November 1st at 5 am! I start a full week of visitors center training on Wednesday!!
I Love You All!! I am so happy, this gospel is true and saves lives- it is saving me!!

Love Sister Shurtz

Letter from Sister Shurtz's Mission President

Michelle's mom read this letter to me over the phone, so here is a summary of a letter from her mission president Brother and Sister Elsworth
"What a joy it was to welcome Sister Shurtz to the Mesa Arizona mission.  We feel honored to have her as a member our great force. Thank you for preparing your child and we will do all we can to take care of her and help her in this transition from the MTC to the mission field.  Letters from home will help her do better in this transition, remember to send her messages that will show her your love and spiritually uplift her. She is surrounded by those who love her.  The Arizona mission is a wonderful place to serve a mission we are among strong members and have two temples and a visitors center. May the lord bless you and your family while your missionary is serving the Lord.  
We highly recommend all letters and packages be sent to the mission office, they will be sent the day after we receive it at the mission home.  Please use the whole name Michelle Lillie Shurtz.  Send packages through US mail because they can be forwarded.  FedEx and UPS take longer to get to the missionary because someone from the mission home has to take it to them.  Please allow plenty of time for special occasions such as holidays and birthdays,  it takes an extra 2 or 3  days to get from the mission home to the missionary.  Each companion receive their own copy of the Ensign.  Please package goodies nice and tight because the critters like them too."

Mission Home Address

Sister Michelle Lillie Shurtz
Arizona Mesa Mission 
6265 N 82nd Street
Scottsdale Arizona, 85250


This address will be used throughout
her entire mission for letters and packages

Wednesday October 19, 2011

Thank you thank you for your prayers! I would like to have all of the families personal email addresses if you could send them to me incase i want to write a personal email to any of them. Also could you please get me Kristal Sabaitis, and Brittany Hopfenbecks home addresses so that i can write them?? Thank you! I can't think of what to write. I hate having this time limit on the computer, it stops my brain from being able to think properly! haha :) I think I will have to do most of my telling about the mission in hand written letters, which is what I prefer to do anyway since I am not so computer savvy haha. :) Aw I am sooooo glad to hear you are all doing so well! It makes my heart glad! Missionary work is incredible! Remember how sister Perez at temple square told us that the missionaries are not just there for those investigating the church but that they are there for members too? I am learning that here in the MTC. It's been so incredible- I can't describe it. I will write more about the experiences that i've had with that in my letters that I am writing to you. They are about Lawanna and Adrian and Steve. So when you hear about them in the letters you'll know what i'm talking about. LIfe is so great here. I couldn't be happier. I am doing the Lords work and I know.. I KNOW, that he speaks through my mouth here on a daily basis. My words are not my own- so much of the time when I have been teaching lessons here. It is humbling to be a servant of God, but such a wonderful and glorious feeling. I am learning a language- The language of the spirit. I am not fluent yet or even close to being so, but the Lord is teaching me and preparing me. I know that this is his work and that he wants me here for a special purpose. Thank you dearest family and friends for all your love and support! Just knowing that you all are back there loving me, praying for me, and cheering me on, gives me hope and a greater desire to push through the hard times that I am being taught and refined! Thank you all! A scripture that has been on my mind alot lately is D&C 105: 10. I am tryingt to do my best to be prepared more perfectly so that I can properly do that works that the Lord requires of my hands! Love you all!

~love Sister Shurtz

Sister Shurtz's First Letter

Michelle's first letter was 5 pages, so I am going to insert different pieces into this post.

"Wow.... where to start?! First off- I LOVE being a missionary!! It's incredible- the power to teach and desire to learn are greatly increased- I can feel that so strongly. So they don't waste time here- they get right to business and throw you right into it all.  My experiences so far have been great and uplifting but literally exhausting- It's an overwhelming yet wonderful experience. "
"I love my companion, she is just fantastic. Her name is Sister Kranendonk, we have decided to go with Sister K. Now I am being completely honest right now- I seriously love this sister- we are so much alike and share so many common interests- she is 23 and has a strong testimony of the gospel.  She is very sweet and truly desires to better herself in every way- she is open to any suggestions of study and routine.  We have set goals to get to know the Elders and Sisters in our district and to be more outgoing and friendly to everyone. I love that she has a great attitude. We have the perfect companionship- we both work hard study hard and have a strong desire to improve in any way possible and be obedient. It was funny when the Zone leaders were talking to us about doing companion inventory, because Sister K and I basically do companion inventory ALL THE TIME just in our normal conversation- we are constantly talking about things we like about each other and also asking each other what we can iimprove on and what we need help with"
"Today Sister K and I are preparing a lesson on faith and will be teaching our first lesson to a (mock) investigator.  We are both excited and nervous because our instructor will be acting as the investigator is really direct and knowledgeable.   She is really going to test us, which is good, but also scary.  Our instructors in class are amazing- they are powerful and teach with a strong spirit." 
"Sister K and I studied like crazy for our first investigator discussion and boy am I glad we prepared! The Elders that went to the same investigator before us didn't even get into the door- so we were so nervous! We said a prayer before and told ourselves that no matter what we were going to get into that door! We did get into the door and we taught, but nothing that we had prepared in our outline- it was amazing.  Sister K is so inspired and we fed off of each other so well." I thought it was interesting that the lesson plan that we had prepared for her was on faith-yet we didn't teach it to her- we ourselves needed that lesson plan so that we could have sufficient faith to follow the spirit and let it fill our mouths.  The Lord works in mysterious ways."

"This place is awesome! I love it here and I love this work! Thank you for your love and prayers, I need them!"
Sister Shurtz

First Email from Sister Shurtz

HI Hi hi!!

Okay so it's my first P-day and i'm trying to effectively plan everything in! Life here in the MTC is so crazy and so busy and mostly SO incredibely AMAZING! This place truly is the Lords temple of learning. I have really been blessed to have a companion that is very good at planning and watching the clock. We are always early and ahead of schedule. She is teaching me alot about organization and time management- which is awesome because I really need to learn those things! except.. I lost my watch so that doesn't help with keeping track of time.. haha. I hope I find it. Otherwise I'll just have to get another one when I get to mesa. Well.. to be honest I can't believe that I've only been here a week! It feels like it's been a month! - not in a bad way, It's just that  there is so much packed in every day, that I am accomplishing what I would normally accomplish in a months time, in a week! It's awesome! Okay so mom, just so you and dad know, I am sooooooooo! grateful that we got me that black trenchcoat before I left! I use it everyday, and I'm wearing it right now even! It's pretty chilly- ha I didn't even think about the MTC and needing stuff here. I also LOVE my shoes, thanks for taking the time to let me get good ones. I have seen many that don't have comfortable shoes for them, even though they bought expensive ones. I am sleeping warm. Just thought i'd let you know! :) The sleeping schedule is not even being hard for me. Today I even woke up before the alarm! I am SOOOO excited to go to the temple today!! Sister Julie B Beck came and talked in our Devotional yesterday and it was amazing!! Make sure you send this to LIsa for me, because I know she'll appreciate the fact that I got to hear from Sister Beck! :-) She talked about temples and all about how temple affect us as missionaries and teaching the gospel, it's all intertwined- I am learning so much!

 love being here it's still hard, and i'm am being humbled constantly. I feel as though I am being put through the refiners fire. I feel so extremely inadequate as a servant of the Lord and want so badly to be better. I know that the Lord knows this and he is helping me to become that, through learning and experience. I have learned that just having a testimony of the gospel isn't enough, I need to dig deeper, love deeper, and teach people, not lessons. My dear campanion sister Kranendonk is probably one of the most Christ like people I know. She is so patient with me. Ha.. I discovered that I get so into teaching the investigators and testifying and all that, that I talk to much and don't allow her to express her thoughts and  feelings that she desires to express enough. I feel terrible every time because I don't even know i'm doing it while I do it. Ha i'm really working on it though. We have talked about ways to be more unified in teaching and i'm really trying to apply those things. I feel like our last lesson went much better!! I tell you all this not to complain or have you worry, but just to let you know I need your prayers and advice! I LOVE you ALL so so much! please send this to all the family, and please send me their emails. also if anyone wants to write me but doesn't know the info, they can look me up on dear elder! sorry i can't write more, my time is up and I just got started! Loves! MWAH :)

~ Sister Shurtz

MTC Address

Sister Michelle Lillie Shurtz

MTC mailbox #285

AZ-Mesa1101

2005 N 900 E Provo MTC UT 84604-1793

The Harvest Truly Is Great!

President Thomas S. Monson
"Youth of the Church, the world is in need of your help. There are feet to steady, hands to grasp, minds to encourage, hearts to inspire, and souls to save. The harvest truly is great. Let there be no mistake about it; the missionary opportunity of a lifetime is yours. The blessings of eternity await you. Yours is the privilege to be, not spectators, but participants on the stage of service to others."

Missionary Scripture

Doctrine and Covenants  68:6

Wherefore, be of good cheer, and do not fear, for I the Lord am with you, and will stand by you; and ye shall bear record of me, even Jesus Christ, that I am the Son of the living God, that I was, that I am, and that I am to come

I Hope They Call Me On a Mission

Sister Michelle Shurtz- Mesa Arizona, October 5, 2011

Peace, Joy and Serenity

There is no other labor in all the world that brings to a human heart, judging from my own personal experience, more joy, peace and serenity than proclaiming the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ."
Teachings of the Presidents of the Church:
Heber J. Grant

You are called to represent the Savior

"You are called to represent the Savior. Your voice to testify becomes the same as His voice, your hands to lift the same as His hands. His work is to bless His Father's spirit children with the opportunity to choose eternal life. So, your calling is to bless lives. .

"Your call has eternal consequences for others and for you. In the world to come, thousands may call your name blessed, even more than the people you serve here. They will be the ancestors and the descendants of those who chose eternal life because of something you said or did, or even what you were. . .You see, there are no small callings to represent the Lord." Henry B. Eyring