Flight!!

As I checked my email yesterday I noticed that there was a note from my mission, so i eagerly opened it. It was my flight itenerary. I was to have a 14 hour layover in Salt Lake City. Oh good Greaf I thought. What am I going to do with myself for that ammount of time? So I called Mom. Told her my delima and she suggested that I call my mission president and see what he has to say. I agreed. Just as I was getting ready to call my Mission President the phone rang. It was him. He informed me that I was to stay the night at the MTC in Provo and them meet up with the missionaries leaving the MTC in the morning. All kinds of exciting. He is excited to get me, and I am excited to be going back. I get to stay at the MTC again. WOHO!!!

Short Stint

Hello and Greatings from..... California. It is Jamie and I am home for just a few more days. I came home for surgury.Surgury went fine and just 2.5 weeks after surgury I am cleared to go back into the field and work. I have resilved to work harder the seccond half of my mission than I did the first half. I got a rare outsideish look at what my life would be like if I had not gone out. Quite frankly it scared me. Some people have not grown or changed since I last saw them.... nine months ago. It has been nice remaining a missionary through this. If I get caught in a situation that I don't like, I can just claim that I'm a missionary and get out that way. It has really been a blessing to be able to see everyone and see how they are doing. It has strengthened my resolved to be the best that I can and to continue to learn and go. I am glad that I have been able to come home and I am excited to head back with all the strength that I have to be the best missionary that I an be.

A Report

Mom, Dad, Max and all else who might be possible reading this letter:
Well, unfortunatly there is nothing uberly exciting to note this week. Mom, thanks for getting that birth certificate out to me. Was it where I thought it was? Well, so this week has been full of tracting. we currently have 1 investigator, Kevin and so we have been out tracting everyday. It is getting really tiring. We are starting to set up appointments to get Family mission plans set up however, and we are doing member stop bys at night so that we are not out tracting in the dark and at 8:30 at night.
Last Thursday was the fireside with Elder Clayton of the 70 and it was awesome. We went and we were thankful that we were be able to go. We took two recent converts and one of the Elders investigators. One of the recent converts, Elsa, she is 83 and wasnt sure if she wanted to go. We finally convinced her that she really did want to go. We had a blast and All three of them felt the spirit of the meeting and so did we. It was great, and it really rejuvinated our spirits. It made us realize how much we are appreciated because Elder Clayton asked some of the recent converts to say a few words about how they felt about us full time missionaries. Many of them spoke about the sisters. Anyway, so that is all for this week. Sorry.
PS. Mom. did you and Dad get my letter this week? And what's the status on an address for me to write Siah at? I will try to remember to ask President on Monday at interviews if I can email him.
Anyway, Lotsa love comming from Illinois.
Sister Jamie luthy
PPSS
So, I have been thinking, and my birthday is comming up soon...... so here is my birthday wish list, never fear, its all stuff that i had defore my mission that should be in that clothes basket of things that i could not fit. so here it is:
my fleese sweats, maybe in my closit still
my church music, including the the hollow of they hand which dad thinks he is stealing.... including my voice male cd's PLEASE
cd player and speakers that Dad baught for me for christmas
book of mormon Cd's
and my/mom's nature dound cd's.
Thanks

Also..... max, could you make me a special cd of upbeat church music, maybe borrow some cd's from some of your cool friends in Washington. :)
Thanks.
JAmie

Ok,so one more thing....apparently a few people forgot that I do have a mail box that sits empty most everyday :(

First Open Letter

June 7, 2006
Hi everyone. How are ya'll doing? Great! Glad to hear. So, Iv'e noticed that my mailbox is looking rather bleak of late. I suppose that's because ya'll lost my address? well, ok then.
It's:
Sister Jamie Cee Luthy
Illinois Chicago North Mission
3295 N. Arlington Heights RD #108
Arlington Heights IL 60004.

Or my email is jamialine@yahoo.com Be sure to include your address so that I can snail mail you back :) (Mom is manning my email at this time and forwarding any letters on to be without reading them, so feel free to to write.)

Ok, so I'm doing great! I love my mission. I am currently in Beloit Wisconsin. I love it up here. It hasn't been too hot yet. good thing. The humidity hasn't been terrible yet. I'm just looking for the day that it starts getting bad.

I've been doing a lot of finding (tracting) of late. Seams our new investigators fall into a deep hole never to be found again.

I am so glad that I came on my mission. It is the greatest decision that I could have made. It is going by so fast. My faith in the Savior and in the great work grows deeper every day. Comming on a mission has filled a void that I couldn't other wise fill. I am so greatful for all of the support that I have recieved from everyone.

There is a poem that starts out like this:
A mission is a strange experiance,
A trial and a test.
It throws at you the worst,
yet teaches you the best."
How true those few lines are.

I love you and I am greatful for all of you. I pray that you may continue to recognize the greatness of this work and the loveof the Savior. I pray that you will continue to draw on Heavenly father in all that you do.

With love,
Sister Jamie C. Luthy
Illinois Chicago North Mission

Good Morning

Hey! Good Morning. If I have to be up and functional and writing you [then] you have to be up and functional and writing me as well. So mom, I finally got A.'s letter, Albania huh? I bet he is soo excited. Thank Dad for the letter, that was nice to hear from him.
Well, what to say this week. I love my companion. She is so awesome. We have found so many new investigators the last week and one is not yet firm for baptism and another is projected. They both cried in our lessons, the spirit was so strong in both. The one that is not yet firm (which means that she has said she will be baptized when she knows that these things are true) cried so hard when we read Moroni's promise. She said that she knew it was true. We told her that she still needed to pray about it. She prayed for us tho. That was our 1st lesson with her. We found her because we were going to contact a less active and she was sitting on her porch, so we talked to her. Her name is Chante. She has 3 kids and the youngest is a month. She said that she would try to come to church this Sunday with her kids. She is still recovering from a c-section and it's not healing very well. We explained what a priesthood blessing is and asked if she would like one, she said yes. I am so excited to continue teaching her. Sister Stafford once said that when you do all that you can, and you suffer long and hard and the lord sees that you really want what you are going for he will bless you. Bless he is. I am so grateful for the opportunity that I have to teach Chante. She is so sweet.
I love being a missionary and being able to teach the gospel of Jesus Christ and see the changes in peoples lives. This is the greatest thing, and the best decision that I could have made for myself. I can't believe that I almost didn't come. I have grown so much in just the short 3 months that I have been out here.

Oh, on another note, I am back in the Rockford Stake. Which means that I am back in the same stake as Freeport and this weekend was Stake Conference which means that I got to see people from Freeport. It was so great. People that knew I went to the City were really confused as to why I was back up there. I saw the Sisters that are now in Freefort and were able to catch up on how everyone is doing.
Well, as always, I have to go write president, but I will be back to see if there is any progress being made in the way of letters. :)
Love always.
Sister Luthy

Possible Reasons

I forgot to mention something. The last few mornings in Chicago, we have been awakened by people outside our window tagging the building (ours) and also the one across the street. One of the members in the city says that it looked like the Latin King Gang. Anyway, they were out in broad daylight and I got pics of them tagging the building across the street. Anyway, good thing they took Sisters out huh?
Love you, I'm safe and the Lord watches over his servants.

PS. Street contacting is challenging, but FUN.

Transfers

HEY! Guess what?! I got transferred AGAIN! Yeah, now I'm in Wisscansin, however you spell it. Anyway, the town is Beloit. Can you believe it? Three transfers, three companions and 3 areas. I am excited to start work in this area. [My old companion] and I were white washed out and some Elders were put in. Funny thing is that I knew at the beginning of last transfer that this was going to happen. I did it in Freeport... I know I was going to the City, and I did it leaving the City. I think I'm going to be staying here for a while though.
It's nice to get a new comp, it really is. This one seams much nicer, and hopefully we won't butt heads all the time. The whole last transfer I felt a small feeling of what D. felt when she was leaving J. In the sense that I thought that one day everything was great, and the next it was crazy. Anyway, Heavenly Father really knew what He was doing when He had us move. Besides, I was tired of listening to her whine about EVERYTHING! Seriously. I could never do anything right, her knee hurt and she wouldn't take anything for it, tracting with her was horrible! She always complained since the first day that I got her that she was ready to leave the city. She went to North Shore, which is not truly in the city, so she should have been happy.... right? Well, she complained about that. She didn't want to go to North Shore, because to her it still was the city. Well, I think that is the only really exciting news for the week., I have a new comp!
Love you LOTS!

ps. No letter from A. yet.
so.... China?

Boo!

Well.... Guess what's this Sunday.... Mother's Day! I will probably call later.... about 6ish your time. I don't know though... it all depends on what's going on. I've got a million and 1 things going on. I got a letter from Lutes yesterday. It was great.

[My companion] and I are heading down town to do some shopping. A member gave us both gift cards to Old Navy... so we are going to have some fun. Also, I think we are going to go down to the mission border and take a picture of the Buckingham Fountain.
By now you should have gotten 2 boxes right... one addressed to me and one addressed to you. The one addressed to you I forgot that I had put part of you Mother's Day present in it.... so you will need to open it and figure out what's yours. If you can't guess I will tell you Sunday. Also.. there is another, much smaller package on it's way. It's they rest of your Mother's Day present. I'm confident that you will LOVE it. It should be there Saturday so that you will get to cry when I talk to you Sunday. Oh what Joys.

Alright... so the thought for the day.

I finished reading the Book of Mormon this last week and had an awesome thing happen. We were doing spring cleaning and ran across some loose papers, upon closer inspection we realized that it was the testimonies of people in this ward and General Authorities on the Book of Mormon and Joseph Smith. Isn't that Awesome!
Oh, transfers are this coming week. We are expecting for [my comp] to get transferred and me to stay... but anything could happen.
Love ya, can't wait to talk to you Sunday.

Jamie's Most Recent Letter

Hi everyone. Sister Luthy's sister here: This is her most recent letter. She sounds like she's doing well. Keep in mind, letters are good; so, feel free to send her some! Now, on to the main attraction:

Well, I'm doing well. As I said in the last letter, Sister Stafford went home, and I am now in the City. Today was transfers. [...] I have been told that EVERYTHING in the city is expensive, and that everyone runs out of money, and that it is ok to ask for money, so.... please put [some] my account, [that] would be great.

Guess what Sister Stafford and I did last night before we left Freeport today. We gave Gary a Firm Baptism. It is going to be a while before he is baptized, but it is coming. I am so excited for him. Oh mom, he's so great. He wants it so bad.

Well, I wanted to share and awesome experience with you that I had sometime in the last week or 2. Sister Stafford was trying to figure out who was going to go to Freeport to "Greenie Break" me. I had left "the study" and them came back in, and I knew in my heart that I was leaving. I just knew it. I came in and told Sister Stafford, I'm going to the City. She said, no, you can't. They won't white-wash the area again, they just did that 4 1/2 months ago. Sure enough, they did. Sister Boyer who was there before me with Sister Stafford went back to Freeport to train. The ward up there is so excited to have her back. When Elder Barlow called to tell me that I was leaving I knew it, and started to cry. I knew that it was a blessing from Heavenly Father that I knew that information. There was a reason that he told me before transfers came. He wanted for me to be prepared to make that transition. As I start my time here, I just have to remember that President Rowley is relying on the spirit when he places us were he does, and that there is a reason that I am here. He is an inspired man, and he must have known when I came that I would be ok losing my companion so soon and when transfers came that I would be able to come here. I am so grateful for the Holy Ghost and for the comfort and assurity that I was able to have, and for the emotional preparation time that I was given. Just FYI, I kept working hard, as if I didn't even know that information, and as if I were staying in Freeport.

Well, nothing really excited else happened this week. Gary decided that he wanted to feed us, so he made the Johnsons and us dinner. When I get around to developing pictures I will send some home of Gary and the Johnsons.

Well, take care, I love you.

P.S. Thanks for the pictures of dad [...] and all. I am excited to get [...] them. I hope to go to the temple next week, maybe.

Lotsa love.
Sister Jamie Cee Luthy