Hello my celestial family,
Here is a quote from a local church marquis:
"Saints have a past, Sinners have a future".

How, how can I write the contents of this thaumaturgical(miraculous) week? I come to the question, "Does it really get, or could it really get any better than this?" The workings of the Lord have been truly indefinable as He has carefully and attentively shepherded His child. I was honored to witness, and the Father glorified at the entrance of, My Brother, Xiaodong Qi into the waters of baptism. No single event in my mission seemed more rich or with such divine bliss.
As he bore his testimony, it seemed the words of such angelic origin carried to our ears by his voice and carried to our hearts by the Holy Ghost, that it did not seem possible that God at that moment would not take him back with Him to Heaven.
After the ordinance was performed, there was a zion-like enthusiasm and elation by all. The memory of Brother Qi's triumphant joy will never be dimished in my heart. He was so excited! So happy! Oh how the Lord has blessed us!
I pray that these words and this event will bless you and strengthen you. I pray that you may feel even a portion of what was felt.
May Father guide us to such spirits as these continually and throughout our lives. For we have a labor to perform whilst in this tabernacle of clay! Let us remember our Brothers and our Sisters.

All My Love, Sister Bonnie Colvin

Ni Hao ( this means hello, how are you in chinese)
Heng gao shing ren shi ni
wahoo!!! Yes, wahoo is how things are going in Troy. The people are going crazy for the gospel. Troy has been so blessed. I remember praying asking God that He would pour out His spirit upon the people of Troy that they would be prepared, ready, and searching. It appears to me that that prayer had been answered the moment it was uttered.

Sister Wilson is doing great. There is still much to learn, but everything is going to go very well. She is a hard worker.
ANyways, this week has been great. We have been working hard to prepare Brother Qi for his baptism. We know that he is ready, and even better, he knows it too.
We are teaching loads of chinese people. Last week we had 3 at church. We have an english class we're teaching w/ about 8 or so students. It is so cool. The best way we've found to find people to teach is doing service. Most often this speaks louder than words. It has been so wonderful to teach so many people how to pray and then to hear their first prayer that they offer to the Father. One said he wouldn't stop asking until he knows God is real. etc.blessings etc.
Wow!!! I wish I could write about all the people we're teaching, or even all the people who are getting baptized....it is so wonderful!!!!!! Celestial missionary work. I've never been so blessed. It just reminds me of Alma 26... I never knew it was possible that my mission could be like this or that God would grant unto us so much success.
love you,
zie jian
love Sister Colvin
ps: I hope you had a great Birthday Sarah....sorry i missed it again.... I ran out of stamps... but i'll be sending your letter today.
Pss; I haven't forgotten all y'all who've written me...hopefully you'll get a reply soon.

HIHIHIHIHIHI my *FAMILY*
I did not get to write last week because we found out that Sister Furner was leaving and that I was training!!! Yes that is right. I am training....
Haha, when I found out, I cried because I didn't want to train...but I know that the Lord wanted it...and oddly through it all I had a firm peace that wouldn't go away no matter how much tried to cry or worry it away hahahaha. Anyways...actually the transfer sheet was messed up because it said I was leaving for a little town called Andalusia and Troy was closing...I might've had an aneurism!But again oddly I knew that it was wrong for some reason,.,,,then to find out my feeling was right.

Man...... This week has been crazy. On my trainee's 1st day we tracted and taught a crazy scientologist.....2nd day we set a BCD with Josh Jordan whom I have seen in a dream before....3rd day we taught a man in spanish a little(we both speak)...etc etc etc

Anyhow I'll cut to the chase. Please pray for me like never before....for real!
Anyways, pray your guts out for Brother Qi to be baptized on the 28th,Tianchi to know God is real as he is praying about that, Josh to quit smoking, and the companionship to be strong.
Love y'all
luv Bon







Dear President,
The people here are amazing. This week we had Brother Qi, Tianchi, Josh Jordan, and William Wang at church. The branch is so excited!
This week I found a good gift. The Lord allowed me an abundance of joy in our beautiful investigators, our loving branch, and my beloved scriptures.
The training experience is definitely not easy, but I believe the Lord has been preparing me for it. For that, I am so grateful. He allows us His grace that we might meet challenges we are faced with: sometimes instantly, and sometimes that grace teaches over time and makes us strong. I am hoping, I can cultivate a kind of mission/companionship culture focused on love+work so that she will have a great advantage as she begins this journey. She is definitely a very hard worker ,very dedicated, and many other things. This I am glad for, and I know we will become better people from serving together.
We are doing our best, and, wonderfully, that means the Lord will do the rest.
Anyways, I look forward to seeing you on the 26th
I love you President,
Sister Colvin

Hi Colvins/Services/Wrights,
Sorry y'all, I haven't written the past week or two. I didn't have the chance for various reasons. 1st reason, I can't remember. 2nd reason, I blame the Elders...nuff said. hee hee


The God of Heaven and Earth has blessed us beyond measure and understanding this joyous week. I wish you could see the goodness in my life right now. Your prayers for me have been carried across the heavens and poured down upon me.

Here is what I sent to President Summerhays:

Hi President,
Thank you for your prayers.
We had a great week this week!
Robin McKendry was baptized and recieved the Gift of the Holy Ghost.
We started teaching the English Class for the Chinese students and have already gotten 2 new investigators Tianchi & Xiao-dong.

Xiao-dong Chi now goes by Brother Chi. He was so excited to learn about "the God". He said he had always believed in Him but didn't know much about Him or where to find that information.It was so fun to teach him about Heavenly Father. He was so surprised that He has a physical body. We taught him how to pray. Now he says he feels peace when he prays. He loves church, and he loves the gospel! He came to Robin's baptism and told us afterwards that he felt the spirit so much that he didn't even want to breathe. Yesterday, he got up in sacrament meeting and bore his testimony. It was the best I've ever been blessed to hear. :) He has also said to us that he wants his family to believe and wants to marry his girlfriend in the temple! I cannot even say how amazing he is. He is very special.
Yesterday,
we got to teach Tianchi how to pray, something He's never done before.

We fasted yesterday and prayed in faith. 1 person was added to God's Kingdom, 2 non-members bore their testimony, 3 people decided to be baptized, 1 person came to know God and asked to learn more about Him, 2 missionaries grew in faith.

I stand amazed before God who has breathed new life into me.

Love, Sister Colvin

-----
ps: everyone who gets this letter has to write me one letter this week
PUH-LEASSEEE

May 19th 2008

My dear Forever Family,
I decided to say that just because I'm so happy about it.
I wish I could talk to y'all forever...oh wait...I can :)
Wahoo!
You know what is great. The Lord expects us to get lost in the work and this we do. All of us do. It doesn't matter if you're on a mission or not. One of the greatest things about this is that though I am lost in it,,, I do not forget the ones I love. I pray for you & I still communicate with you. One can be fully engaged in this great work and remember to send love to those who need it. Their family eternal. We can still develop eternal ties even now.
I'm sorry I am out of time. I love you and now go to serve the Lord.
Love bonnie





Hi President,

Thankyou so much for listening to , helping, and supporting us. We have had a rough week, but things are looking way up! You know, I can't even say that we've had a rough week, because the Lord has blessed us too much for me to say that.
We are going to see Robin today ( at her request of course)!
Kris Bista is soo much happier now!
Joe is doing well with the elders and there are no problems.
Takeya is going through a rough patch saying she is not, at present, ready. Yet, she still desires baptism and to turn herself fully to God. We pray that the Lord will unfold in our minds what He would have us do.

We have gotten to do a ton of service this week. It is great!! Opportunities for it have been exploding all around us. I even got to sing at another funeral this past weekend for a group of christian bikers :)
I'm not sure why we haven't had much success with finding new people to teach. We will continue and perhaps His purposes will be made known.
Well, I love you President and am happy to see you this Thursday.
Love, Sister Colvin

Hi everyone.I can't believe it has been a whole year! This has been the best year of my life.Happy Birthday Grandma....I'm going to be sending you a card.Things are crazy and great.I have been slowed down a bit with some sort of cold. We were teaching one of our investigators and it was obvious that the did not realize the great importance of this message. I bore my testimony and got a little choked up... In that moment I felt the love God had for this man and how much He wanted this for him. It was so important. I believe he felt something and somewhat understood, but he told my companion to make sure I get some rest and drink plenty of fluids. ( He thought it was because I was sick that I had tears in my eyes :). ahh......Anyways, we also found out this week that a lot of our investigators actually know eachother ....and that two of them are moving in together this next semester. God has some good plans ready and I am excited to see what they are. Anyways, please everyone keep writing....Sis. Furner and I haven't gotten anything in a while....all we get are coupons and diaper samples...I love y'all please pray for miracles for us out here and for y'all out there.Love Sister ColvinPS: Ha ha happy mothers day....I wouldn't forget that.... I really am not sure when I can call y'all.... uh....let's try for 7pm ish my time???not sureIF this is a problem you can call angie stewart at 334-268-4087

Monday, April 28th, 2008

Hello from Troy!
This week is so great!!!
Miracles miracles....We have had so many good things happen.
We currently have 3 and potentially a few more who have made
the commitment to be baptized. I am so amazed at how many people
there are that truly are seeking, actively searching.
Robin Mckendry, we met just outside her apartment. She was new,
looking for a church, and people who were like her. She and her
children are going to be baptized in May.
Takeya Bryant, we met after both having a dream about teaching
her. We sure were surprised to find her that same day. She'll be
getting baptized in June.
Kris Bista, we met on campus shortly after his arrival to America
being a new christian. He will be getting baptized in June.
Joe Zhao, we met walking down the stairs after saying a prayer in
my heart that God would use me. He illegally held christian-based
meetings in his home in China for years. He is praying to know if
Joseph Smith was a prophet.He's commited to stop drinking.
Dear family, I wish you could hear all of what is happening...if
you did, you would be amazed, and there would be no doubt of the
reality of our Father in Heaven. He working through His children
( who know how to pray in Faith) to bring to pass His wondrous
and great work, the salvation and exaltation of His little ones.
I love you all. Ask in Faith, and He will show you what great
things you can do for Him. I am excited to talk to y'all in a few
weeks. Thank you for your letters, packages, and best of all  your
support and love.
Love Sister Colvin
Ps: Happy Birthday Ammon ( that's great about Pasha getting
baptized. I remember that I had prayed for him)   
Ps: Happy Birthday Krista (on the 25th) I hope everything is going
good for you. Love you
Ps: Love you Sarah!