Off to England

We finished up the MTC and loved every minute!  We loved the other senior couples and were so blessed to listen to three apostles speak to us in devotionals.  We had D. Todd Christoffersen, Marvin J Ballard and Quinton L. Cook.  Such a marvelous opportunity to learn from them.

On Friday September 16th we left Salt Lake City, Utah on a flight to Amsterdam, Netherlands and then on to Birmingham, England.  Nichol, Eric, Brandee, Payton and Brynlee took us to the airport but Eric started a group text and before we knew it we had our family from Idaho, Colorado, Washington and Utah joining in to tell us goodbye and add their comments and sending their love.  We loved having them with us!

We flew over part of the United States, Canada, the Atlantic Ocean, Iceland, Scotland and landed in Amsterdam.  Our flight was 10 hours to Amsterdam,   After a two hour layover we flew on to England, which took about 1 hour.

MY THOUGHTS AS I FLEW LOOKING OUT THE WINDOW OF THE AIRPLANE AT A FULL MOON AND THEN BEAUTIFUL SCENERY AS IT BEGAN TO GET LIGHT :
 They (Thomas and Ann Oakey) vs. We (Conley and Jolayne Willmore)

*They arrived from England to Salt Lake City - September 28, 1856.
We arrived from Salt Lake City to England - September 17, 2016.  (Exactly 150 years later to the month)

*They prayed to Heavenly Father at Benbow Farm with the United Brethren for truth and their answer was to join the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and go to America to build Zion.
We were concerned and confused and prayed to Heavenly Father to know what to do and were told to go forward with our plans to serve a mission and "Go Now".  He called us to England.

Thomas and Ann Oakey

*They looked upward to heaven with faith and courage.
We looked downward as we flew with gratitude and amazement.

*They left everything they had, except a few necessities.  They even left family members who they would never see again. They packed for 10 people, themselves and their 8 children.
We took 4 large suitcase and 2 small suitcases full of clothing, shoes, and everything we would need.  We took electronic devices that we could turn on and in an instant see and talk to our friends and family.

*They traveled 5512 miles from England to SLC by the Ship Thornton, steamer boat, handcart and wagon which took them 147 days(3528 hours).
We traveled  5234 miles from SLC to England by air which took 13 hours.

*They went through trials, death, hunger, fatigue, and freezing temperatures.
We sat in comfort as we were served hot meals, beverages, pillows and blankets.

*They were rescued in Wyoming with wagons, food and blankets and taken by wagon to Salt Lake City were they were cared for by the Saints.
We were greeted in Birmingham by President and Sister Leppard and drove to the mission home where they had prepared a wonderful lunch with some of the other missionaries.

We are so grateful for all the many blessings that we enjoy and are so grateful to be here and to begin our mission to spread the gospel in England. We are here for a purpose and that is to Invite Others to Come unto Christ.

WHAT I LEARNED THIS WEEK:
I was reminded of the power of prayer and how our prayers are answered.
As we were riding in the car from the airport to the mission office, we were talking to President Leppard and his wife who told us how last January, February  March and April they and the other missionaries were praying for someone to replace the Burt's who were leaving the mission in September.  At the same time, we were praying in the Ogden Temple and received the answer to "Go Now" on our mission.

Trivia:
Today at breakfast, we had a breakfast bar at the Hotel we were staying at.  I noticed Black Pudding, so I decided to try some.  Later Sunday night, when I was talking to Eric and told him the new foods I had tried, He said, "Mom, you are not supposed to eat that, - it is made with blood."  I looked it up on the internet and he is right.  Scott - you cannot say I do not try new foods anymore!

Notes from Conley:

   When we arrived in Amsterdam and walked to our next take-off area, Jolayne asked me if  I was having a hard  time breathing, because she was.  My chest had been feeling tight and I was also very nervous.  I went to the bathroom and while I was there had a prayer to take away out breathing issue and my nervousness.  When I arrived back where she was she was talking to a man in a suit.  His name was Elder Boom,  He was from the Netherlands and a member of the quorum of the Seventy.  My fears were quieted, then he told us that we were having trouble breathing because we were below sea lever and the air was very heavy there.  He was flying to Birmingham and in charge of Stake Conference in Nottingham.  I'm positive he relieved both Jolayne's and myself's nerves.