Letter #2

Sister Furniss wrote:

"Hey yall~~~!!! Today is P day and every monday I check my email once a day for 30 mins.. So really if you want me me to reply... WRITE ME A LETTER.. he he... cuz man I am really tryin to type fast here.. i think once I get out in the fiel I'll have like an hour to email.. but for right now I only have 30 mins... So really just write me cuz I am gonna probably just hand write lots of letters today.....
So we woke up really early today to go to the temple and we walked up to the temple and it was CLOSED for memorial day.. what a bummer... So then we got our P day clothes on and walked straight to the comp lab... I LOVE EMAIL DAY!!! and lots of letters.. hint hint....
Man what a great week it has been.... My roomy the Sister Barton (the one from virginia).. she was like Sister Furniss I have to know.. why are you always so happy??? Do you ever get sad???? and then she was like cuz this is the hardest thing I've ever done..... This is what i told her..
" Well ya know I haven't really been sad here.. I have just had the spirit so strongly and I have felt a lot of peace like this is SOOO the right thing to do.. I think that my faith has increased tremendously.. Thats why I have been doing alright here.... and its true.. like I have to rely on the Lord a lot or else I'll be a wreck.
There have been a lot of times that like even Elders have had emotional break downs in class and just start crying histerically.. I'm like whoa.. poor elders!! My roomies have had their moments too .. of just crying all the sudden.... I'm like whoa.. Why AM I SO HAPPY??? I have never had the urge to just break down and cry... i'm so grateful for that.. I GOT FAITH!! haha
We haven't really had any apostles come.. Yesterday we had Sister bEck speak to the RS and then we had this newly called general authority Elder Newshandwer.. or somethin like that.. That was pretty sweet... My favorite day is probably sunday cuz you get to just relax and listen and learn all these amazing things..
Yeah so the Elders do fart a lot.. I always get the question.."why are you on a mission".... or sometimes their like "So sister furniss do u got a boyfriend"??? I"m like umm NO.. haha.... This black guy in my class asks me that everyday.. its pretty funny.....
I will send pics of my BFF here at the MTC.. Sister Barton.. She is so HOOT!!!! I seriously can't sleep at night cuz I'm laughing so hard at her.... She will all the sudden break out the singing of Sister Act.. and I'm like WAHAHAHA.. I'll send pics this week....
MAn I LOVE being a missionary SOSOSOSOS MUCHO!!! Like seriously there is like a fire up my butt and I am like talking all the time.. i don't
know why.. Like yesterday they asked for anybody to bear their testomony and
I like jumped right up and bore my testimony on faith and how the lord knew my desire of my heart to serve a mission and its through faith that I got through my thyroid surgery.. Then I sat down and I was like WHOAAA did I just DO THA??? hahaha.. like seriously the spirit is so strong here.. I love it
I have never studied so hard in my whole entire life and I have never wanted to know and learn so hard ever before.. I mean i thought I studied in colelge... but HERE I study so much more and I'm learning sososo much.. I am really working on being able to just speak with conviction from my heart when I teach.. NO NOTES FOR ME!! I just wanna be able to get up there with confidence and speak with the spirit and from my heart.. My teacher is really good at that and I'm working so hard at that.. .I think
i'ts comin along pretty welll though...
Man I can' tell you how happy I am to be able to be a missionary.. It is the absoulte greatest feeling in the whole entire world.. Like i think man I can't go home now.. I got so much work to do!!! My testimony is gonna be shootin through the roof by the time I'm done wit my mission..
I leave June 2nd.. and I fly into georgia and then I'm fly to knoxville with 3 other elders..So pray for me that day!! I't gonnaa be so scarey.. and really hard to leave my sister barton... but i got so much faith.. Sister barton is always like.. "and it came to pass that nephi said... what it do" HAHAHA she is like a gansta.. so funny.. Well I best be off and do some laundry and letter writing..
I love you all sososo much!! my heart aches for u all!! but then I go through all these spiritual experiences and im so close to the lord.. that it all evens out and I don't worry at all... being a missionary is the greatest blessing in my life right now.. and I am going to be the best person I can be and serve the lord with everything that I have!!! I hope you're havin fun at the cabin!!
PS - can you send me those family pics we took at the gardens?? I wanna
show my family here! hahaha....

LUV YOU ALL!!

PS... wirite me a letter sometimes.. cuz my hands are gonna fall off typin..
HAHAHA..


LUV YA!! MWAH!!"

1st Letter From the MTC

Chelsey Furniss [chelseyfurniss@myldsmail.net]

hOLA!! hEY yA'll!!! How is everyone DOIN???? Well I am officially a missionary and I LOVE it so much. This is my new email and ANYONE can email me. So send lots of emails!! Tell everyone that this is my email and that I can receive emails from anyone. I sure do love letters!! wink wink... You can also go to dearelder.com and write me FOR FREE! and I recieve it that night. So when Jiller has her baby dearelder.com me right away!! : ) You can also put this on my blog or whatever and forward it to the family if ya wanna.OH and PS I got that letter from Dad and Alvin.
Well the MTC is the awesomest place on earth. There is such a sweet spirit here. I don't know what it is but on thursday I decided I would count how many times I felt the spirit and it was more than 20 that is for sure. Also I don't know what it is, but when you are a missionary you have this fire up your butt and you just wanna go talk to everyone!! My roommates and my companion are like "Sister Furniss you are so outgoing and so nice to everyone".. I'm like WHOA are you serious?? I can already feel the mission starting to change me and I love it. I am trying so so hard to make so many new friends. I am learning so many new things each and every single day. I also have noticed that I am saying things that I never knew I could say either. I just go by the spirit and follow that and I start saying all these crazy things!! haha.. I am also really trying to understand the gospel principles that I am going to be teaching. It's really hard!! I pray and pray that I will be able to gain a better knowledge of them because like Sister Lint said yesterday... Scriptures are the power to what we teach.. I am also really concentrating on just following the spirit in everything I do. The spirit is REAL!! Use it!! : )
I live with 3 other sisters. My compaion is Sister Palmer and she is 21 and from Utah. I love her so much. She is really shy and not very confident in herself YET! I am helping her a lot. She is the senior comp.. but I knida feel like I am the senior comp.. haha.. I pray that she will over come her scaredess and become "BOLD " and speak with Power and Authority like it says in preach my gosepel. Cuz she is so shy she doesn't think she can do as much. I just try and be positive and tell her she CAN DO IT!!! She is also heavier set gal, so at gym I stay and walk with her. She asks me why I am so fit and why I eat so healthy all the time. She told me that she thinks there is a reason I'm her comp, so I can help her. I dunno If i really have.. haha..
There is also my roommate Sister BArton! She is my best friend here at the MTC. She is from VIRGINIA and going to Georgia.. I have never laughed so hard in my lifetime.. We joke and just have fun because we have the same personality. It totally makes her comp jelous.. haha!! I will send pics today and you can see her. She is this really big african american girl and she makes me laugh all day long. Every black girl we see she will always be like.. "hey sister furniss do I look like her"... HAHA.. She thinks that white people always think that black people always look alike.. HHAHA.. OH MY she is funny...
Last night we watched the Joseph Smith movie with all the elders here in the MTC.. and OH MY it was a great movie.. I also heard like 5 farts... GOSh! haha... Elders just get to comfortable that they just let it all out.. .but really its prolly from the food cuz it's pretty NASTy.. It all just comes out the other end... I usually just eat a salad every meal.. haha... cuz the food just hurts my stomach....
I love my district too...... There are like 6 elders and 4 sisters and everyone is goin to Atlanta Georgia except me and 2 other elders.. TENNESSEE REPRESnT!! The MTC is so great but sometimes you feel like you're in a cage.. and y ou're just ready to go out and start talking to people and meeting people and having some fun.... I am also the music director for the branch... So I lead like everytime cuz the sisters hate getting up in front of people... haha.. Whateve... Music is so powerful...
So my P day is every monday and that is when I get to check my email .. So send lots!! I also get to write all day long so I'll keep on sendin all the pics..
I love this gospel SO MUCh!!! My testimony has grown so much in this past week that it's so incredible. My desire to learn has increased tremendously and I know that the power of prayer is REAL!! I pray like 50 times a day and I can tell that thats why the spirit is with me all the time.. I have a funny story about Sister Barton too.. I'll have to write that in a letter or somethin....I am so thankful for the restoration of this church.. Without it I wouldn't be sitting here and I would be nothing. I have so many things I wanna tell you guys of all the things I'v learned that I'm runnin outa time!!
How's easton doin????? How is the family?? Has Jill had her baby yet??? Tell me everything ! I also LOVE pics so send lots..
I am feelin great. They say after sunday everything gets better, but seriously everything got better the day I became a missionary. I thought that I would be a lot more homesick.. I don't think i've cried once missing home. The only tears I've had is the power of feeling the spirit. Tonight we are teaching the 1st lesson.. AHH! My philosphy is just pray for the spirit and he'll tell you what to say. You are basically just teaching what you know and it's the investigators part to pray about it and find out for themselves. I am just christ and heavenly father's helper into finding people to come unto christ. I can make them change their lives. It's between them and lord........
Well I could probably write a novel on all the awesome things I'm learning and how my testimony has strengthened.. but I need to go study some more.. I love you all!! and I know that serving the lord blesses your family tremendously. So feel it!! I also know that sacrifice brings blessing!! LOVE life fam!!! It's the best thing that god has given us!!
LOVE YOU ALL SO MUCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Love,
Sister Furniss

A note from the Dad of the missionary.....

"She was majestic as she recieved her name tag, "Sister Furniss" and gently placed it on her shirt. A trail of tears lead us to a large room full of families and missionaries. Church commercials were playing and more tears were shed. Short talks of obedience and dedication were given and the short story of "Called to Serve" was viewed. Songs of missionary work were sung and the then the mission president said, "Good-byes are like taking off an old bandaid, the quicker the better and less painfull". Hugs were exchanged, tears were shed, and she walked away, bold, serene, confident and exited. She will do great."

It's OFFICIAL!

This is Chelsey's sister, Jill... I will be updating this blog while Sister Furniss is away for 18 months. I will be updating friends and family on her progress with stories and pictures.

She has entered the MTC today, and is officially a MISSIONARY!!

Bye Ya"LL

I am going on a mission this WEDNESDAY! BOY am I so ready. I have been at home since Thanksgiving. It has been the hardest thing EVER. The hardest part is probably having to wait this long to serve. God has a big plan for all and he'll let you know what you need to do and when you need to do it. I AM SO excited to be able to go teach people this awesome thing called the gospel. I am pretty clueless on how to do it right now, but I will SO learn! : ).. Like when I went and student taught I had NO IDEA how to teach anything. I was pretty scared, but then I studied and prepared the things I needed to teach and I LOVED it. This is the hardest thing I've ever had to do, but the most exciting/ rewarding thing. I agree with every missionary out there that it is HARD to leave everything and go to a place you've never been and do a thing you've never done. It takes loads of faith and a lot of heart. What an awesome opportunity! I look at my suitcase and everything I have packed and I'm like "WHOA this is not me"... But really it IS ME!! I'm not going on a mission for myself, even though I know it will help me in a lot of ways. It's for the LORD and the people out there just waiting for me to come knock on their door. NOW that is a pretty good feeling to have. I want to forget myself and get the work done so I can help raise up the kingdom of god. I want to be able to come home everyday and hurt from head to toe on the mish. No regrets on this mission. I LOVE this gospel so MUCH! I think I would be lost little girl without it. It is basically awesome. It is what gets me through life seriously. I know that this is true because I can feel in in my heart every single day. GOD BE WITH YOU TILL WE MEET AGAIN!! 

LUV,

Sister Furniss

The only boy in my life.....

1 more week and I will be an official missionary and sitting in the MTC working my rear off. I am so so excited! I don't think I've ever been this happy in my life! You just sit here and you think.. Oh my gosh how is it going to be?? What's everything going to be like? It's an exciting/nervous feeling! The other day I went to another ward and they announced in sacrament that they should write this particular missionary in the ward and tell him how much they miss him.. HMM... Won't that make him more homesick?? Why don't they write him and tell him what a good example he is and encourage him to do the work the best he can? I dunno.. I guess we'll see how it really is come 3 weeks! I will MISS my family and friends like CRAZY! It is really hard to leave! It only makes you stronger right? YES! OH how I'm gonna miss the only boy in my life . . . . .

                       Tate, Me, and Easton

It was really cold this day. He loves riding in "Cheltz car" & Watch Barney on my lap top. 

                                                  Send me lots of pics Easton!! <3

"Let us relish life as we live it, find joy in the journey, and share our love with friends and family'' (Thomas S. Monson)