Coronavirus

CORONAVIRUS is in Albania so that's a party!! The government has shut most everything down so it has been weird. We are quarantined in our houses which is not the ideal situation as a missionary but we are making the most of it and it has been good!

So different to not have church yesterday. A missionary's life revolves around church, okay not actually, it revolves around Christ, but it was very odd to not have church. It helped to realize what a blessing it is, and that we can still have church whether it is in a church building with lots of people or in our homes with a few people.

This whole thing has been really good for me and helped me to focus more on Christ. It has taken a lot of trust. This has pushed me to more fully trust in Christ and believe that he has a plan for us and he knows what is best for us. I don't understand a lot, but I do know that Christ loves us and he will do what is best for us. We may not always be able to see it, but I promise he is always there for us whether we see him or not! I am so grateful for our savior and that we can depend on him when everything else is chaotic, he is constantly there for us! I love you all, please let me know if there is anything I can do for you! You are miracles in my life.

Love, sister Butters

Berats got TALENT

So a few things, I am getting transferred to Tirana! It's the main city, so it is very crowded, so that will be fun and interesting I will keep you all updated! I go tomorrow! I am sad to leave Berat though, because the members are awesome and it is such a small branch so everyone is really close so that has been amazing! We also get to be really involved because it is so small. This week we had a branch talent show and it was awesome! So many people performed a talent, it was sooo good, people were singing solos and not that it was bad, but they for sure haven't had a lot of practice, but they are so confident and it was awesome!! Everyone loved it and everyone was supporting and cheering each other on.

It was mother's day here yesterday and we had a really good lesson with these two moms in our neighborhood, they are so sweet. After talking to them for a while I realized how much they sacrifice for their kids, and I know it is not just them, all moms do this! It made me realize I am really grateful for my mom and all she has done for me! She is amazing and I love her so much! I don't think we fully understand how much our moms do for us! Everybody say thank you to your mom today, and tell her you love her!! I love you all have the best week!

X puth
Sister Butters

10 months!

The virus has hit Greece and Italy and I guess America so none of us are safe. Haha but we are stilling living so that's all that matters. Everybody use hand sanitizer and stay alive!

I got to go back to the city I started in!! It was so amazing I got to see a lot of the members and it was so unreal to see them. Seriously so so happy. They are just really amazing and it was crazy good to see them! I walked in and surprise Shkelqimi and Mariana one of my recent converts and awe they are still the happiest people ever despite their circumstances.

Also the elders had a baptism which was really fun, the spirit is always so strong, and it is really cool to see how the gospel of Jesus Christ changes people. The light of Christ is so real. It is so exciting to be on a mission and see that light enter into people's lives. Missions are so unreal so grateful I can be here, i love it so much! Love you all!

Love, motra Butters

 

WOW missionary work

Woohoo,
Albania is a party, missionary work is a party, most the time!
We have been doing a lot, a lot of contacting, so you go out, walk the streets and talk to people, which is really fun here, because Albanians don't have much to do at all, so they like to talk. So it's a blessing to contact here, but sometimes it can be so awkward. I think that's just missionary work though.

Had an exchange with sister Mann! It was a very good time! I love her, we were in the MTC together and she came to Berat and we had a fun time!

A good story is we were teaching someone the restoration, and it has a big lead up to Joseph Smith restoring the church, so we led it up and then the first vision came, and we told her that Jesus told Joseph Smith no church was right and we told her that our church was the true church restored to the earth and she said "NO WAY, I DID NOT EXPECT THAT" a lot of people dont know that we are the true church! It is so fun to be able to share that knowledge with people here! I love being a missionary, it is so much fun!! Love you all have an amazing day!

Love, sister Butters

VALENTINES ❤

Happy Valentines!!

On valentines we had a branch party, it was so much fun!! Albanians have this traditional dance and so they were all doing it, it's pretty easy to learn, but everyone was so hyped so it was a party!

Had a lesson in a village and so we leave the city and drive for about 30 minutes, it was a really pretty drive, through some nice views. At one point we had to take a dirt road all the way to their house. It really felt like off roading, it was a good time. During the lesson it was raing and so after, our car had sunk down into the mud, so it was completely stuck. Luckily the sweet member expected this and shoveled us out! It made me a lot more understanding of the sacrifice they make each week to come to church.

I have been making a list of things that made me smile throughout the week and its been so fun to see how many, its seriously overwhelming to write them all! So if you're looking for something fun to do I would for sure recommend it!! I have realized that God is soooo good! He is always placing people and things in our lives to make us happy!

Love you all tons!

Puna Misionare !!

Hi everyone!

I LOVE BERAT! It is a really good place. All of our neighbors know us now, so that has been really fun because we go outside and there are so many people to talk to. The kids are definitely my favorite part, whenever they see us they come sprinting up to give us hugs. Aw it's so sweet.

Not many different things, mostly classic missionary work stuff happened this week. We taught some good lessons, met some really cool people, I gave a talk in church, served this cute lady, helped to bring her pile of sticks to her house. A lot of people helped us and served us. This one sweet old man drove to a few different plumber stores for us, to look for a water filter we needed. People really do go so out of their way here to help us out, they are so willing to serve. To sum it up it was a solid missionary week!

I love it here! I am so happy to be serving a mission! Love you all have the best day

Love, sister Butters

Police in Albania :/

Sooo something exciting, we had to go to the police station!! Okay, you cant imagine one in America because it is nothing like that, it says policia on the outside so it looks like it is going to be a simple, nice, police station. Not the case, inside looks like an abandoned DMV but worse. So basically my companion, lost her phone, so we went up to a police mans office and he smoked as he asked us a series of question, one was if we wanted a cigarette. So that is definitely a first and hopefully a last, but it was an experience to say the least.

We had so many people in our English course this week. We saw a family that comes to our course, when we were out to eat and they paid for our meal. It was the sweetest thing ever! People here are so giving and so thoughtful it totally made our day! They left without letting us know they had paid for it, and shows how selfless they are they didn't care to have any credit for what they had done. That is so amazing, so important that we do acts of service without expecting recognition. That reminds me of Christ, he served everyone and expected no thanks for the things that he did. People may not always show thanks for the things that we do, but we can be more Christlike when we serve others, whether they appreciate it or not.

I am loving it out here! I am also getting transferred to a new city called Berat so that will be way exciting, I will keep you all updated! Love you guys, have the best day!


Sister Butters