update

Sister Curfew did get transferred to Lincoln, Nebraska.  She can receive letters at her apartment but packages need to go through the mission office.  So, plan on a delay for packages.
Address for Packages:
Sister Ashley Curfew
Nebraska Omaha Mission
11027 Martha St
Omaha, NE 68144-3107

Address to her apartment
Sister Ashley Curfew
5344 R st. Apt 3
Lincoln NE 68504

If you want to send a package call me first. I'm trying to get a members address for her to receive packages faster

December 9, 2013

Dear Family,

I'm glad to hear that things are going well at home. Yeah the mission office will take forever and a day to get our packages, because they stopped forwarding them. So I probably won't get the package you sent until after Christmas. Oh well.

This week was full of adventures. I've learned a lot. 1. Fasting works. 2. I'm just like Dad. 3. Prayer really does change the night to day. 4. God shows his love for me through food. We have an awesome relationship. :)

1. I have gained a bigger testimony of fasting this week because it was fast Sunday last week and I fasted for some help in adjusting to the area. There has been some seriously divine help this whole week. I've never adjusted so quickly to anything. It was crazy. By Tuesday I felt like I had been here for a couple months and for the most part I knew what I was doing. It was incredible! 2. I was talking to my companion earlier this week and I realized I sounded just like Dad. It was so funny. I was like oh my goodness...I am my Fathers daughter.  Weird. 3. Prayer changes everything. We have been praying for the Elders in our area and our ward mission leader because they didn't have a really great experience with previous Sisters here and therefore disliked Sister missionaries a lot. But we started praying for opportunities to serve them and that they would have success in everything they did this week. And it happened. In the meantime we were able to become best friends with the Elders and the ward mission leader.  I have never seen unity happen so fast. It was crazy.  I am still in shock. Also our ward mission leader has the coolest Star Wars stockings (he got them from target) We had a Star Wars nerd moment. It was pretty great. :) 4. So at random times during the day I will be like man I really want some gingersnap cookies or I want a cornbread muffin so bad. Or I want some lemonade. :) They're just random craving that I have but I don't have time to bake and I didn't have any lemonade. But we went to a members house for dinner this week and she was like "I felt like making cornbread muffins I hope that's alright with you?" I was like Uh Yeah that's alright with me!! :) Then the Relief Society president gave me a huge bag of gingersnap cookies...she was like the recipe made extra for some reason. Eat them. I was like oh my goodness there is a God. :) Then the Elders gave me a glass of Lemonade randomly. It was just so funny to me. :) It just makes me realize that Heavenly Father is very aware of us. Even if it's just me and my silly cravings for food.

On to more spiritual things. I was committed by my Sister Trainer Leader to get a blessing every transfer. So I got a blessing this week from my ward mission leader and it was so great. :) He blessed me with confidence and that I wouldn't be shy to share my testimony with His children. He said that I have a happy spirit that is needed here in this area. He said that missionaries here need to learn something from me. He blessed me with love for my companion and to teach her. He said that my family would be safe. And to keep strengthening my testimony. I love getting priesthood blessings because they are Heavenly Father speaking to me through his servant.  I never thought of it that way and it definitely made it a lot more personal. :) It was just a very needed spiritual boost. :)  

This week has been amazing and great. Hopefully we can keep it up. It's been really cold and I've been getting really good and driving in the snow. Even though according to my companion I am  grandma driver. But whatever. :) haha I love you guys so much and I hope everything will go great this week.

Love you!

-Sister Curfew

December 2, 2013

Dear Family,

I'm glad you all had a great Thanksgiving! It didn't even feel like Thanksgiving here, which I was grateful for. Seems like you guys had a blast. I missed mom's Pecan Pie. Mmm Best pie ever. I hope everything works out well for Christmas traveling and stuff. I am also glad that you enjoyed the C's. Oh man I just love them so much, they're really changed my life in so many ways. Sometimes I wonder if I was sent to Le Mars for people to teach or the people to teach me. I think it was a little of  both. :)

Well yes I have been transferred. This was the hardest thing of my life. I did not want to leave Le Mars at all. I didn't want to leave the other missionaries in our ward. I didn't want to get a new ward mission leader. I didn't want to leave my District or Zone. But I've gotten a couple of days to adjust so that's good. :) My new companion is Sister S. She is from Ogden. Hahaha. :) It was really hard to say good bye to Sister K. We did so much together and even though we didn't like each other at first. we learned how to love each other and now we are best friends. It was especially hard leaving the members. I could not stop crying when I figured out I was getting transferred. We had Thanksgiving dinner with two of my favorite member families in Le Mars. Yes we had two dinners...FAT!!! But I really like pumpkin pie. :) Oh man packing was a beast. I hadn't packed in 6 months and I had acquired a lot of stuff....ha that was fun. But anyway. After much praying and scripture study I am finally coming to terms that Lincoln is my new area. There are a ton of African Americans here. A lot of our area is in the ghetto. Walking down the street is sketchy! It's a fun adventure, everyday. Sister S is really great. She is really organized. She is 19 and she came out straight out of high school and has been out for 3  months. Her last companion didn't finish training her so along with Senior Companion I am also Follow-Up Training her. It's weird to have a lot more responsibility. I enjoyed being Junior Companion. I didn't have to do anything! But at the same time it's good. This area is struggling a little bit. But it has a ton of potential! I have full confidence that Lord put me in this area for a reason. Even though at first I didn't want to be here.  So our plan is to work extra hard, be exactly obedient and I know that Lord will  bless this area. :)

I've gained a huge testimony of comfort and peace that comes from scripture study. Yesterday during personal study I just felt better. I wasn't reading anything specific that dealt with my situation I just felt better. Which is something I really needed. :) I'm excited to see what happens in this area as it progresses more and more. Right now I am just praying the ward members will like us and trust us because right now they don't. I am also praying that I will love it here. :) Sorry this is a short email. A crazy amount has happened and I can't remember anything. Sorry!

Love you guys,

Love, Sister Curfew

November 25, 2013

Dear Family,

Happy Thanksgiving!! :) Mom, the book 21 days closer to Christ is one of my favorites. I borrowed it from Sister Roseman, and I read it in college and it changed my life. I love it. :) One of my favorite talks from conference is the Like a Broken Vessel talk. We share it a lot with people who we teach.Thankfully transfers are on Friday! So I get to eat with one of my favorite families here in Le Mars. Tender Mercy! :)

Well, this week we were faced with much opposition. We had 5 investigators tell us that they didn't want to meet with us anymore. Oh my goodness that was the hardest thing ever. It was seriously like one right after each other. It was very discouraging, and very upsetting. But we pulled through. Then one of our investigators, P, was given Anti-Mormon material. It was this video about the Bible vs The Book of Mormon. I was like seriously Satan, you play dirty! Thankfully she hasn't watched it yet, but we couldn't convince her to not watch it. She was like I need to find out for myself. So we watched the Restoration video with her and explained that when we hear truth the Spirit testifies to us of the truth. She even was like, wow this is so peaceful. So we're hoping that she will be able to know which one is true and which one is not. Ah man. Although it was 18 degrees outside no one let us in when we went tracting. But it wasn't that cold. Once your face goes numb it's all good. :) haha

On the brighter side of things we were able to go visiting teaching with a sister in our ward named Sister B. She is quiet, but she is a perfect example of someone who desires to follow Christ. I love hearing her teach. :) Her visiting teaching partner wasn't able to come with her so she called us. So we went and saw a Less Active, named D, and we haven't been able to get an appointment with her in about a month! So this week if finally happened! Halleluiah! But it was really cool because Sister B was just like "Hey, why haven't you come to church?" I was like oh my gosh she said it out loud...but D was like you know I don't know. I need to come I am slacking, please help me. Then Sister B was like okay, you get a ride with Sue to church and then we'll bring you home and eat dinner. And D came to church. All we did was bear our testimonies and read a scripture, but really the member missionary, Sister Burrell, got this Less Active to come to church! Woooooooooo! That was really neat to watch how special Visiting Teaching really is. :)

There is this place in Le Mars that's for victims of any kind.  It's a sketchy place... We have two women from our ward in there. (Sister K and I call it the Lock-Up. I don't know why) They have gone through a lot and are still going through a lot. We don't like to go there without a priesthood holder but we couldn't get one to come with us so we went with another sister in our ward. That was a powerful lesson. The Spirit was so strong, and we could feel love of the Savior for those two women. He really does know what's going on their lives, how they're feeling and so on. We sang "I Need Thee Every Hour" to them. The Spirit testifies of truth so well through music. :) I love lesson like those.

It was really hard saying goodbye to the C's on Wednesday. It's crazy to think that it has been so long since I've been here. I guess we really never know for sure it is really goodbye, but we're pretty sure. The people here are just crazy awesome. :)

Although this week was rough because of the investigators, it's been interesting to see how the Lord helps us out. We have been committed to say our prayers out loud. I don't if I already told you this. But I felt my prayers becoming a little stronger this week as we have had to rely even more upon Christ. :) Thankfully, He is able to help us out in all times, whether we are in need or not. I love this gospel. I love telling everyone about the Book of Mormon. I love being an instrument in God's hands. Even though I struggle with so many things and am so far from being the perfect missionary I know that as long as I am worthy to have the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost I have no need to fear. :) Love you all. Have a great Thanksgiving. :)

Love, Sister Curfew