HI Everyone!!!!
How are you?????????? Love you like crazy :D Well this was a week of miracles :) So much love this week!
Our dear sweet investigator had a great week.....we had a very bold member (and when I say bold, I mean bold and animated and just tells it how it is! Love this sister :) ) come with us to visit her and after that lesson, she hadn't smoked for two days! Earlier in the week, we had set up with her and went over with a member, but when we got there her neighbors said she had just biked down the street so we followed! And I kept thinking why would she have left if she knew we were coming........then I was thinking what plan Heavenly Father had for today as well......well we followed her to a grocery store, we waited outside for a few minutes and then Sister Grigg and I decided to go inside and find her. We found her and saw a can of coffee in her hands and asked her what she was doing........then she walked over and put it down and checked out :) In that lesson that day, she shared with us that she felt she hadn't received an answer from Heavenly Father about the B of M or the Church being true, but then as we shared the wonderful Hel. 12:5 about the Spirit and our pei-ke shared a beautiful testimony.....she realized that the peaceful, happy feelings in her heart while she prayed were the Spirit and she had received her answer! Her face lit up and the biggest smile was on her face!! She had prayed and asked God, and now she knew He had answered her and she declared boldly that she knew it was true! Such a special lesson that I will never forget..........then the next day she told us we were her angels that Heavenly Father had sent into the store to stop her from buying coffee! I definitely believe it- Heavenly Father works in miraculous ways :D This sweet Sister is so incredible..........I know she can do it, by the power of God she can..........this is what the Atonement is all about.......it changes us, helps us to live God's standards and live up to our divine potential. I know she can do it!
I took Sister Grigg to get some good American Subway on Monday :) and in the mall we met a sister from the Philippines who is working here, a member from the Philippines since she was 14 and hasn't been able to find the church in Tanzi for two years until she saw a group of Sisters in the mall! We met with her later this week and she shared with us her story and testimony and her desire to be active again! She said she has been praying to Heavenly Father recently that she could find the missionaries or the church and she found us! Then she pulled out her old, worn-down English triple combo and we gave her a new B of M in Tagalog and she almost cried :) She is married, with husband and little boy still in the Philippines and she is here working here for another year........she testified of how much the Gospel has blessed her family as her parents are both members and how much the Spirit comes into our lives as we read the scriptures. I had a moment when I was sharing my testimony with her.......one of those moments when you know that that is exactly where you are supposed to be.......bearing testimony of the Savior and that you want to do it forever. She came to church this Sunday and bless her heart was so patient with my translating, but another Sister is going to take her to the English branch in a few weeks and she is just so happy! She wants to go through the temple and receive her Pat. blessing too :)What a miracle :)
My b day was wonderful! On the 30th, I totally forgot it was my B day the next day!! haha :D My dear sweet companion made us funfetti pancakes, visited a lot of wonderful souls, and we had McDonald's ice cream.......twice.....in one day :) Then we bought some cakes at 7-11, my companion stuck them all together and we made a party of it :) Wow 23........well this is about as far as I imagined my life when I was a little kid, so I've got no certain plans for the future! Let the excitement begin!
This week my studies were all centered on our covenants and the power and blessings that come as we keep them. This was definitely what my Heavenly Father wanted me to study every day because it was in a verse of scripture that I read every day :) I felt prompted to read the section on covenants in True to the Faith and I read that as we keep our covenants, we don't have to be commanded in all things. Then it led me to D&C 58: 27-28, the words of the Lord that we can do many good things of our own free will and bring to pass much righteousness. This is amazing to me!! What a powerful blessing, as we keep our covenants we have made with God, we don't have to be told by Him everything we need to do, but we can go forward and do the things we feel are right or desire to do.......we can ask for His confirmation and then go and do. We had an opportunity to share this message with the 1st Counselor in the Stake Presidency and His family and we talked about how it applies to missionary work. We don't have to wait for the Lord to tell us who's ready or who to invite, but if we are keeping our covenants, we can go and invite and share with those we want to and bring to pass "so much righteousness!" I know in my mission that I have progressed the most as I didn't wait to be told everything we needed to do, but as I prayed and then went and did! Our covenants are so precious.......and especially I know that as much as they were mentioned in Conference, the Lord truly wants us to be strong covenant keepers right now- so cool!
Well I love you all! Can I just tell you that love is the greatest of all the gifts of God? It truly is!!! I know that Heavenly Father loves us all immensely, the Savior love us so that He gave is life for us so we can overcome our weaknesses and become the brightest of lights, I love you all so much!!! Go out and spread that love!!
Sister J.
