Nov. 14,2016 "Serving, Saving and My Savior's Love"

"Serving, Saving, and My Savior's Love"

First of all thank you for all the birthday wishes!! I am 20 now what the heck?! But It was such a great day and a great week!

So this week I typed out my journal for what happened everyday and it went as follows ...

Tuesday

Today we had a great day in shift and it was so good! Then we sang at a rehabilitation center and that was so sweet. So many people were crying and I just learned so much that that was a way that we were sharing the gospel. That it can be that simple. And I know the spirit was there. Later that night we had a blitz with the sister leaders where we go on exchanges but we both stay in the area and cover a lot of distance. We didn't have anything super amazing come from it but we were able to visit the Lowes who we needed to see how they were doing and we were just in the right place at the right time for Vanessa to open up about some of her struggles. I'm so glad that we were the Lords instruments in His hands to let her know of and feel His love.

Wednesday

I was way stressed this morning (well just a little) because our zone leaders elder Kelly and Elder Taylor requested me to take their investigator through Gods Plan for His Family presentation and teach the Plan of Salvation and totally honest I haven't had a ton of experience teaching that so I studied way hard and then they came and it went really well! And I learned a lot from being able to listen and also observe those elders teach as well! We had district meeting after shift and it was awesome! President and Sister Vest were in attendance and John Davies also shared his conversion story and taught us about the blessings and fruits of being those challenging and testifying missionaries. As missionaries we truly call all to repentance and we need a measure of boldness in us as we do that (3 Nephi 6:20) if we want to find the elect!! It was so powerful as we all discussed this. And man oh man do I love President Vest. Truly I can't express how much I love and revere him!! Wow he is so inspired and an inspiration to me to truly do Gods will. This is no matter of Willy nilly funny business we do out here. ITS GODS WORK!

That powerful plug and punch in the gut from the spirit allowed for an awesome night! After dinner we went and contacted some names and met some people who weren't interested but then met a former who's dad is a member and who wants to get baptized but mom isn't on board but we were able to get to know him better and it was awesome! Then we went back to visit a potential and she wasn't home but we met her very friendly nice son who said we could come back in an hour so we did and we taught her about the Book of Mormon and she was super interested and gave us her number and said she would read and to call her to set up an appointment!! BLESSINGS!! First other lesson I have had in a month!

Thursday

Performed service for the Lowes. We surprised them by going and taking all he leaves in their yard! The pile was so huge that I stood in it and it was up to my hip. Woohoo! BUT sister Matagi and I are SWOLL so we raked it all and bagged it all by ourselves in record time! Vanessa was so appreciative and Michaela was so cute she came out and helped us during the last bit. (She's 3) and I just thought you know this is what true Christlike love is all about. Serving others truly does have a way of healing you. (See Mormon message Lift). Shift tonight was kind of slow, so I love asking older sisters who are on the home stretch (some sisters leave next week) about their experiences and what they've learned most and how. I love hat the mission is the greenhouse for life. But you get to keep growing after your mission and just applying everything you've learned!! YAY!

Friday

Full proselyting day!! Today we had an amazing FMTM (Friday morning training meeting - weekly instruction at the VC) and all the sisters that are leaving this transfer shared their wisdom and it was awesome! I love learning from older sisters out here and seeing how much they have learned and how they learned it, so I can be the same way!! Afterwards, we went and studied and then went to do some service and painted some cabinets for a single sister in our ward who is awesome!! She also fed us lunch so that was a plus. Afterward since we were already in our service clothes, we went back to rake the Jensen's yard because they had leaves and we had borrowed their rake to do the Lowes yard the day before but Sister Jensen was not having it haha she wouldn't let us take her yard!! She is so funny. We love her. So she said we could take her neighbors yard who was a for,ear investigator! So we did! And even might have faked some of her yard as well. Which we got scolded for

all in good fun. We love the Jensen. (Also fun fact raking is so much easier and faster when done with a snow shovel instead). After that we had to do weekly planning so we went to the church and planned until we had dinner and a meeting with ward council to create our ward mission plan for 2017. We had fasted and prayed so much about this and had been studying and planning for it all week! Because if you wanna get your ward pumped for missionary work then what can do that is a bomb ward mission plan!! And we were so glad with how it all turned out. Right off we brought in the spirit by talking about our true mission and Jesus Christ. And the spirit and inspiration just flowed the rest of the night! Oh how grateful I am for a diligent, hard working, actively involved ward council!! And for the spirit!!

Saturday

This morning was a little crazy, we ended up doing splits for a little so I could go with some sisters to a YW in Excellence activity while my companion took through her old ward thru the VC. It was a good time! And I'm so proud of all the YW in our ward!!

After we studied and had lunch and finished planning. Then we headed out to our area for some time. We only had an hour before we had shift again but we were able to locate a part member family who said we could come back later this week! Yay!!

Shift was awesome. Met so many amazing people and it was nice to just share my testimony and get to study in that dedicated building :)

Sunday

TURNED 20 todayyyy

🏼

Today I had the best day!! I woke up to our house decorated by the other sisters we live with and my companion made me breakfast and then we had shift at the VC with elder Wilson who's birthday it was too!! We had cake and cupcakes and party hats and it was so fun!!! Sister Munoz really through a great celebration! I love them all so much.

After we ate we had ward council and followed up about the ward mission plan and set goals for it (even though some ward auxiliaries thought that's dumb to do that because how can we possibly meet a random number just on our own) and I bore my testimony to them of praying and working in faith towards goals we prayerfully set. God will give us miracles if we try!! We have to set the number goals to push us(though that's not what it's about). And ward council sang happy birthday to me too. Haha they're sweet. But I don't know how they knew it was my birthday.

Sacrament meeting we had a farewell and it was so precious. Made me nostalgic but it was a huge poly family and they were all so supportive so it was a very powerful meeting! The rest of church was amazing and one of our less actives we are working with - Tiffany - who had come for sacrament meeting (and usually only does) came back for relief society and participated! Yay!!

Afterward we had dinner at the johnsons house. They're the cutest little family. They made cafe rio (the spirit told them it was my favorite) and even made little donuts and sang to me and had me blow out candles!!! So sweet. After we were going to have a lesson at the VC but that fell through so we tried some less actives and were able to see Chloe Radford (another LA we have been working with) and we found out that she had ,just gotten way sick so we helped clean her whole house until some priesthood holders could come give her a blessing.

All in all I have felt so much gratitude not just from my birthday but just so much love from my Heavenly Father and from others as well. I know that God answers prayers. Especially when we are specific. The more specific prayers the more specific blessings! Ask and ye shall receive. That's a commandment with a promise!!

And the reason for that joy and love is our savior. I studied a lot more about the atonement this week. Especially in Mosiah 2-4 it talks all about how the atonement is what saves us and enables us to repent (of course) but it also was the cause of their being "filled with joy" and their "exceeding faith." I learned so much this week that as we focus on our savior we can get through anything. Just like Pres. Nelson and elder cook stated in conference, "Jesus Christ is Joy." "He is the mark" he is who showed us the path and the way to happiness. Our savior is our greatest coping mechanism. Our source of comfort and peace. And most especially HOPE. As a missionary we want to help people so bad. But there is a point when we say "I can't help this person but I know He can." That is the knowledge that has gotten me through and really impressed upon me this week. I love my savior. More than anything! I know He lives. He is why we can have joy amidst any circumstance.

Thank you for all your love and support