16 Months and Baptisms!!

May 16, 2016

Hello there!

First of all, Sister Haughawout is AMAZING! I stinking love her. She is from Texas and has a cute little accent! She is so funny and a great missionary. She has a powerful testimony and brings the Spirit every time she teaches. She's been out for 6 months, and likes to count down the days that I have left... :/ But it's okay! She says she's trying to prepare me for when it actually happens! uh... whatever... 

But, Sister Haughawout and her last companion, Sister Emerson, did a great job last transfer and they taught this amazing lady, Marguerite, who got baptized on Saturday! It is so amazing what the Spirit can do and how much it can change someone. She was so nervous before the baptism, but after it was over and after she was confirmed on Sunday, she was happy. The church is true!!

We have such an awesome ward! Part of my area is at least a little ghetto! Woo!! The other half is this gated area where we can't proselyte. We'll get there eventually! We can go in if we have referrals or if we have members in there. It's a pretty nice place!

Anyway, on Tuesday, we had dinner with an awesome family! They had invited a non-member friend over, Kathy. She moved to California 3 years ago from Vietnam and all of her friends are members of the church. She also taught herself English by watching the Disney Channel!! Haha, but her English is great! We taught her a lot about the plan of salvation and invited her to church on Sunday. All throughout the week, she'd go up to one of her member friend's and say how she was so excited to come, and she came! We taught her yesterday after church, and she accepted a baptism date! She loved church and said that that is how church should feel. Prepared people!!

We were seeking with faith (walking-we changed the terminology) on Thursday, and I told Sister Haughawout, "let's find investigators!" As we walked up to this house, literally right after I had said it, there was this guy, Antone, sitting in his garage, and we were able to share the #Hallelujah video with him, and he felt the spirit as he watched it! The next day, Friday, we were trying a referral on his street and as we drove passed his house, we saw him and he waved. As I looked back at him, he was flagging us down! Sister Haughawout was like "he did not just flag us down!!" I said "he totally did!" So we went back and his brother, Johnny, was sitting with him. We were able to teach them both the restoration! The Lord put so many people in our path last week, it was incredible!

I know that the Lord blesses me as I put him first. No matter what trials are going on in my life, as I put Him, His gospel, and His work first, the Lord will not only help me forget my sadness and trials, but He will lift me up and carry me, so that I am able to accomplish His purposes. This is His work. I am on a mission to serve Him. He understands all that we undergo. He is merciful, and He will comfort us through the service of others. 

 

Go read President Erying's talk on "Trust in That Spirit Which Leadeth to Do Good."

I love the leaders of the church! I know that their counsel is from our Heavenly Father and that they are here to lead us and guide us through our daily difficulties. The Lord loves you and as you turn to Him in your trials, through losing yourself in His work, you will not feel the anguish and pain of tribulations.

Love, Sister Cozzens

Sister Cozzens, Marguerite, Sister Emerson, Sister Haughawout

The Plan of Salvation is Real

May 9, 2016

Hi there!

We had another great week! I am so glad that Sister Bedingfield and I were companions! I say were, because I am getting transferred!! I am going to Lake Elsinore and my companion's name is Sister Haughawout! I am really excited to be her companion and have a new area! I will for sure miss Canyon Crest, it is such a good ward. 

We were able to teach Michael this last week, and he accepted baptism right off the bat! He said that he would read and pray about the Book of Mormon every day!

Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there! I know that my mom is awesome, and I love her so much! Mothers do so much for us, and I am beyond grateful for them. :)

This is a short email today, but I am so grateful for the Plan of Salvation! I am grateful that we have the restored gospel and God's authority. I know that He loves us so much and wants us to have joy while in this life. I know that the trials we face are and can be blessings! It may not seem like it so much during the trial, but I know that the Lord gives us those trials to grow and become more like Him. Philippians 4:13--> "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me."

Have a wonderful week!

Love, 

Sister Cozzens

Sister Cozzens with her "great" zone

"My mini missionary, Hannah, came to visit

us!! She is awesome!"

Mother's Day and the Sisters last day 

together

This guy that literally looks like my brother

May 2, 2016

Hello Utah and wherever you are reading this!

We kind of had a slower week. It didn't quite feel like it! But we didn't teach very many people... but we had fun! We laughed a lot, and since it was the second-to-last week of the transfer, we call it senior week! So, I had Sister Bedingfield drive! Hold onto the dashboard! Just kidding, it was fun! 

I went on an exchange with Hermana Madrid from Peru. She is so awesome! She has a cool story that happened to her on Christmas Day, when she skyped her family. For her Christmas present, she found out that her dad was getting baptized, and she was able to watch the whole service on Skype!! 

 

We had lunch with a less active couple on Thursday, and she began to bash Pres. Bush, and they were talking politics up the wall.. I didn't know what to do, since I'm completely out of the world and don't know what is going on. They eventually stopped, and then we were able to have a nice lesson with them about faith. Exercise your faith!

We met this guy, Jeff, that looks exactly like my older brother. It was so weird... and he was a little bashy, but we were able to go back on Saturday and sit down with him. There may be potential, he agreed to read 3 Nephi 11. We'll see how that goes on Wednesday!

Something fun that happened is our ward had a Hawaiian BBQ! Our investigator, Dakota, and his wife, a member, drove us! #savethemiles It was pretty fun!

At the BBQ: the Turleys (a cool family from the ward),

Sisters Cozzens and Bedingfield, Kristen and Dakota Wolfe

Church was so good yesterday! I am so grateful for the Spirit and the sacrament. We were sitting in an almost empty row, on the end, and you would think they wouldn't miss us, but, they did. They were beginning to line up, and I was looking around waiting for them to give us the bread and then this member, Brother Barton, leaned forward and asked if we had gotten any, and I shook my head no. I guess that I could have told them myself, but I just wasn't thinking! Then, he gave us the tray, and as I thought of it, I realized how important the sacrament is and how the Lord actually atoned not just for everyone, but specifically for me. His atonement is sufficient for all men (and women). I am so grateful for Him and for His sacrifice. I know that His church has been restored. I know that God is the same God, yesterday, today, and forever. I am so grateful that He doesn't change, and that we have the knowledge of the restored gospel and of the plan of salvation.

Teaching people (Jeff) this last week, about the restoration, opened my eyes a bit more to the fact that God has again reached out in love and called a prophet. We have the pure, plain, and precious truths, that were once distorted and changed. We have temples, the priesthood, and The Book of Mormon, and so many other things. I love the Lord, and I know that He loves me. I am His daughter and am part of a glorious plan to return to His presence. I am so excited for the second coming, and that I have the time NOW to prepare for the Lord's return. 

Love, Sister Cozzens

Hiking to Mt. Rubidoux: Sisters Cozzens, 

MuCulloch, Bedingfield and Nielson

 

 Smoggy photo of Riverside

We found a cool lizard!

Spaghetti is Spagbowl in Australia

April 25, 2016

Hello!

I went on two exchanges this last week. The first one was with Hermana Stone in Spanishland. We had a lesson completely in Spanish. I had no idea what was going on, and I was having a hard time staying awake. The man that Hermana Stone was teaching kept smirking at me, because I had no idea what was going on in that lesson... After that lesson, I went to go talk to someone (who spoke English) and I was having a hard time finding my words. The gift of tongues was not on my side that day.

My second exchange was with Sister Nai!!!! She is literally so cool. She has such a strong testimony, and she has a very strong desire to be on a mission! She was a good example to me, and we discussed how I was supposed to train her, but we both agreed that it was inspired for her to not come. I needed to train Sister Bedingfield, and she needed to serve in her home mission, where she met ELDER KELSON LEE!!!!!!!! They served in a ward together, and apparently, he had inspired her so much, when she was over there. We both screamed a little bit, when we figured out that we knew the same person. It was quite funny!

Update on Lake! We went to visit them, and his mom told us that she had gone into his room and found him on his floor reading his book of Mormon stories, by his own freedom and choice! Use your agency for good!

We had a cool experience! A couple of weeks ago, we met this guy, Mike. We had an appointment set with him on Friday last week. I called him a little bit in advance, and he had "forgotten" about our appointment. I was a little annoyed at people cancelling on us, so I told him to come to church on Sunday, and guess what?! He came! He said afterward that our church felt like home, and that he wanted to come next week and for us to come teach him! So cool!! We see him on Thursday!

I hope that you have a wonderful week!

Love, 

Sister Cozzens

Hermana Stone

Sister Nai