Can you believe it? 18 months have gone by so quickly. Debbie started her mission to the Texas Lubbock Mission back in January 2022. She did missionary training online at home for about 1 1/2 weeks then we took her to the Missionary Training Center in Provo at the beginning of February.

During the MTC experience her companion was Sister Rebecca Snow, who was also going to the Texas Lubbock Mission. Debbie enjoyed the MTC immensely!

She loved going to the temple, studying with her companion and district, and learning things that would prepare her for teaching others about the gospel of Jesus Christ.

On February 7, 2022, Debbie flew out with other new missionaries to Lubbock, Texas. They were met at the airport by her mission leaders, President and Sister Child. The new missionaries were taken to the church, fed a meal, then paired up with their trainers – other missionaries who have been serving in the mission and would get them started on teaching and serving in their assigned communities.

Debbie’s first area was Perryton, TX. Her trainer was Sister Amanda Dubios. Have you ever heard of “Hank the Cowdog” books? The author, John R. Erickson, lives in Perryton and his books are based off his experiences of working on a cattle ranch. Debbie loved Perryton! It is small like our hometown. The people were friendly. She enjoyed serving at the senior center and had some great teaching experiences!

The first twelve weeks in Perryton flew by. Sister Dubois completed her 18 months of service and so Debbie got a new companion, Sister Grace Flake. Sister Flake was a brand new missionary so Debbie got to train her after just finishing her own training as a missionary! Debbie was a little nervous but she and Sister Flake had so much in common (large families, homeschooled, etc) they got along so well.

After another twelve weeks in Perryton, Debbie was transferred to Roswell, New Mexico at the beginning of August 2022. Her new companion was Sister Dusti Bistline.

The town of Roswell was a whole different experience than Perryton. After just one week Debbie said she was so sick of seeing green alien heads everywhere, haha. Because Roswell is a bigger town they were able to find more people to teach and serve. There were also some sketchy neighborhoods they visited with some, shall we say, interesting experiences. After just six weeks Sister Bistline was transferred somewhere else and Debbie was called to be a trainer again!

This time Debbie had the pleasure of serving with and training Sister Katie Awerkamp.

One thing I have failed to mention is that Sister Dubois, Sister Flake, and now Sister Awerkamp were all called to be Spanish speaking missionaries. Debbie was called as an English speaking missionary. She tried to learn Spanish with some of her companions. It’s hard when you are training a missionary who is learning Spanish and really wants to practice the new-to-them language but you don’t know it! They had a great time anyway.

In Roswell there are a TON of pecan trees everywhere. Debbie said it was very convenient when you were walking and hungry to just pick up the fallen pecans and have a snack.

Debbie and her companions were able to teach quite a few people, young and old, in Roswell. When she was transferred to Lubbock at the beginning of December 2022 she felt very sad about leaving. There’s just something about working with, teaching, and serving people that draws your heart to them.

Debbie was so excited to find out that her area in Lubbock had the Lubbock Temple in it! She and her companion, Sister Brooklyn Taylor, were able to show friends they were teaching around the temple grounds. They were also able to do service in the temple!

Debbie served in Lubbock during all the Christmas festivities. All the missionaries serving there performed at a special Christmas meal for the community leaders of Lubbock. They sang hymns and Christmas songs.

Later that day there was another big community event at the church with a ton of Nativity scenes on display. Unfortunately a few days later almost all the missionaries began to feel sick. A few tested positive for Covid. Debbie and Sister Taylor also got sick but it mostly felt like a bad cold.

Of her time serving in Lubbock Debbie wrote: “My happiness as a missionary used to be determined by how many lessons we taught, and how our people were progressing. Now, I am happy regardless of what is happening or not happening with the key indicators. I am happy just knowing that I am doing the will of the Lord and serving Him with all my heart, might, mind, and strength. I really do think that your happiness as a missionary is determined by your commitment. Oh I just love the Lord, and doing His will and His work! I can’t even express it, but it makes me so happy!!! This morning I listened to “Faith in Every Footstep” and just wept because I loved and felt it so much. That song is one of my favorites.“

To Debbie’s surprise after only one transfer (six weeks) in Lubbock she was called as a Sister Training Leader (STL) and transferred to San Angelo in mid January 2023. Her companion was Sister Kenya Wildman. They stayed super busy teaching people the gospel, going on exchanges with other sister missionaries, and giving lessons at zone conferences and district meetings.

While in San Angelo Debbie told us about one neat experience she has had numerous times. “Have I told y’all about my food craving miracles? For some reason every single time I crave some sort of food, doesn’t matter how specific it is, we ALWAYS get fed it. It is so cool! It happened twice this week. It never ceases to amaze me, and it’s kind of a unique tender mercy, but it is so neat, and it literally happens every time I want to eat something.“

After six weeks Sister Wildman was transferred and Debbie’s new companion was Sister Ashley Hobson. They continued working and serving and teaching. On one of their P-days they visited Fort Concho which is right in the center of San Angelo. It has all the original buildings!

After another six weeks, at the beginning of April 2023, Debbie was transferred to her last area in Amarillo, TX. Her companion was Sister Thea Martineau.

Here’s one of the many miracles she and Sister Martineau experienced, “We went to teach a referral who speaks Swahili, French, and very little English. The first time we talked to him it was incredibly hard to communicate. This time also started the same way. He had to have his nephew translate for him while we asked him some questions to learn more about him and his request to meet with missionaries. However, as soon as we started the actual lesson, he understood everything we said, no translator needed. What’s more, we understood him! It was a pretty cool miracle!“

Sister Martineau had been serving in Amarillo for four transfers already (24 weeks!) so after serving with Debbie for another 6 weeks she was transferred and Debbie’s last companion became Sister Bistline, whom she had served with in Roswell!

The ward they served in in Amarillo had members who really helped the missionaries. They always had members lined up to come with them to teach lessons. They were also fed well. Debbie really loved serving in Amarillo as her last area.

Here’s the last email Debbie wrote at the end of her mission.

Hey Y’all,

This last week of my mission was probably the best week I’ve had this whole time, as far as the work goes. The Lord sure showered me with blessings right at the end there. We met with basically all the friends we’re teaching, and they all seem to be progressing, which is a miracle in and of itself. Each lesson we had was so full of the spirit, and it felt good to be so guided by him in everything we did. 

As I’m sure I said, I have been praying for months to ‘find’ (start teaching) a family. At the beginning of the transfer, my mission president invited us to think of a couple miracles we wanted to see our last transfer, and then to pray and work for them. He promised that if we did, we would either see those miracles, or we would experience similar ones that are just as recognizable to us as miracles. 

It came to the last week of my mission and I still hadn’t found a family. My comp and I had been doing everything we could think of, but to no avail it seemed. I began to wonder if I had enough faith to see that miracle. I didn’t know if I did or not, but I did know that either way, I would work for it to the end. 

The week flew past and came to Wednesday, my last full day of proselyting. It was the best day of my whole mission. We had 5 amazing lessons, all with people who were progressing, things were working out great, and then guess what happened late that afternoon? We officially found a FAMILY–they are a family of 7, complete with a father, mother, and their 5 children! Oh my, people, I cannot express to you the joy that I felt as we walked out that door! God is so good! He blessed me so bountifully that day.

On Friday after transfers, our mission leaders took all of us departing missionaries to the temple. What a powerful experience that was. To be in the celestial room with so many faithful, dedicated disciples was an experience of a lifetime. Graciously, we were also allowed to go into the sealing room as well, where each of us participated in sealing to parents with President and Sister Child. The spirit was so strong and we all could feel it. 

After the temple, we waited for the golf-ball sized hail to finish falling from the sky (that was exciting) and made it to the mission home, where we all ate dinner together. I had the opportunity to help Sister Child wash dishes and it was such a pleasure just chatting with her for awhile. Eventually, President called us all into the living room. Never have I felt so at home away from home. Gathered with 20 other missionaries and our mission leaders to share a little about our missions and bear our testimonies was amazing. I love all those people so much, and I am so grateful for all the amazing things I experienced with them. Missions are so unique, and really no one can understand your experience except for those you served with (in part), and the Lord.

The next day my parents picked me up at the mission home. I told my Dad to wait to release me because I wasn’t ready. I cried the last time I put my tag on, and boy did I weep when I took it off. To be honest, the hardest part of my mission was having to let it come to a close. I absolutely loved being a missionary, and am so incredibly grateful for the privilege and blessing I had to serve the Lord in that way for a year and a half of my life. There is no better feeling than to know that the Lord can and has used you as an instrument in His hands. I have experienced and learned things that can’t be expressed or understood by others. All I can say is that I love my God and I love my Savior Jesus Christ. I love the gospel, and I love sharing it with others. What a blessed soul I am.

I love you all and I hope to keep in touch with each of you.

-Sister Wadsworth

Joseph and I had the privilege to drive to Lubbock and pick Debbie up from her mission. We went to the mission home early on Saturday, June 24th. It was wonderful to briefly meet her mission leaders, President and Sister Child.

After the mission home we drove to the mission office to pick up Debbie’s bike. We were also able to stop at the Lubbock Temple.

That afternoon we drove down to San Angelo to meet someone Debbie taught on her mission. What an honor it was to visit with him and see his testimony of the gospel growing as he learns and studies the scriptures more!

The next day we attended church in Canyon, TX then started our trek home to Nevada. I’ll share details of that in another post. We arrived back home Monday evening shortly after 9pm. Here’s a video of the group hug from the siblings Debbie received!

We sure are grateful Debbie had this opportunity to serve and teach the gospel of Jesus Christ. We could see her own testimony growing and expanding as she served. Our own family was also blessed immensely!