Homecoming!

 

Stoke Week 3

It's been a good week. We went on a few exchanges again (with some amazing sisters) and we saw some amazing miracles. One miracle we saw was this woman Emma that we met in the street. We talked with her as she was leaving her home and it turns out that her brother in law's family are members of the church so she had heard about the church through them. Her sister and her nephew had attended church a few times and had always felt content when going to church. She said she was interested in learning what made them feel so content when they went. She agreed to have us over another time too! It was crazy how we were led to her.

Nothing else too crazy this week. We celebrated fourth of July as a zone. I'll send pics. We got some stares from other people in the park but it was good. We have MLC and a few exchanges this week so it should be fun. 

Stoke Week 2

It has been such a good week! I got to go on exchanges with the sisters from Gaerwen (one of my previous areas), we had an amazing zone conference, and we had really good lessons with several of our friends. 

We had zone conference with Elder Sabin, one of the area 70's, and he is such a wise man. One of the things he spoke about was having an eternal perspective. He put a small dot in the middle of a white page and compared all of the white page to the eternities. He then explained that the dot was this life and that in the eternities it is such a small time. He then asked to think about what percent of that dot is one bad day, or even one bad month. Our life on earth is such a short time in comparison to the time we had before and the time we will have after. If we have an eternal perspective, it will help us to be able to endure and to see our trials in a different perspective. What a blessing to be able to see beyond just the immediate.

We also had a few good lessons where the spirit was really present. One was with this girl named Olivia that I actually met while I was on exchanges here a few months ago. She said that she'd read the book of Mormon and prayed about it but that she felt she hasn't received an answer. We were able to go through Moronic 10:4 with her and discuss what we must do to receive an answer. One of the things discussed in that verse is real intent, which is having the intent to act on the answer you receive. We receive answers to our questions when we humble ourselves enough to say "thy will, not mine". It was such a good reminder to me, and hopefully Olivia, of the principle.

5th Sunday Missionary Report

What culture change/culture shock experience has been the most interesting for you?

England is more different from America than I expected. They use a lot of funny words here that took me some time to get used to. One thing I always thought was funny was that they use the phrase "are you alright" as a greeting instead of an actual question. At the beginning of my mission people would say that expression to me and I just thought everyone was really interested in how I was doing. People here in Stoke also use the term duck. They say things like "it's alright duck" or "hiya duck". It's so fun.

Can you think of an experience where you felt that you were being led by the Lord?

There have been so many times on my mission where I felt like the Lord was guiding me and my companion so much. I had an experience in my last area that I felt especially that the Lord was guiding us. We were visiting a member in the Gaerwen Ward and at the end of the appointment we asked if there were any returning members that they thought we could visit. We didn't usually ask that question but it just came to mind. They gave us a few names to stop by (they had been in the ward for a while so they knew everyone) and one of the names was this woman named Laura. We looked through our records and we had stopped by a few times with no answer. Somehow we found out we were trying by the wrong house but we weren't sure how to find out the right house. We went to her neighbourhood and decided to ask one of the members there if she knew which house was Laura's. This member didn't know exactly which house was hers but she gave us a range of houses to try by. We knocked on the first house and it was Laura's. We got to know her better and it turns out her sons had been baptised a few years ago but because of circumstances in her life she had not been able to. The crazy part was that her circumstances had changed again just a few months ago and she was able to be baptised now if she wanted to. We felt like we should ask her if she wanted to be baptised now and she said yes! I am always amazed at how the Lord is aware of his children and knows exactly how best to help them. We were definitely guided to Laura's house that day and now her and her sons can enjoy the blessings of the gospel.

How have you felt about the change to be able to speak with your family?  With your missionary?

I love it so much! I feel like I'm more involved in my family's lives now. I also get to see my cute nieces and nephews, which is always a bonus. I feel it was a very inspired change. My companion at the time had just started her mission and was having a hard time and it helped her especially. I feel like a lot of missionaries are benefiting from it.

Share an experience that your missionary has had that could help inspire others to serve?

The thing that inspired me most to serve is the joy that the gospel brings to families. There was a family that we taught in Stockport that I especially saw this with. I didn't know it at the time, but when we started teaching the family, the son had been struggling quite a bit and had some behavioural issues. As the family learned more about the gospel and felt the spirit in their home, the son began to do better. One of the members of the ward was friends with this family and she said that she had noticed such a drastic change in him. I have been able to see the gospel bless my life and my family's life so much. When you experience the blessings of the gospel, it is hard not to want to share it with those around you. I also heard a quote once that said something along the lines of "Our all is small compensation for the Savior's all". I always loved that because 18 months or 2 years is such a small repayment for the many things that God does for us!

Stoke Week 1

Happy Father's Day everyone! It has been a good week. I've been transferred and I'm now in the Stoke/Newcastle areas (we're over two areas here). My new companion, Sister Palavi, is from Australia and is pretty amazing. I'm excited to be working with her this transfer.

So what happened this week? We had a baptism! Her name is Maripaz and she is amazing. She is from Spain and her faith in Christ is so strong. I got to meet her just days before she was baptized but it was such a special experience to see her follow the example of Jesus Christ. I know she made the right decision by being baptized. What a wonderful gospel this is!

I studied this great general conference this week by Elder Sabin called "Stand Up Inside and Be All In". We as a mission were invited to read it because Elder Sabin is visiting our mission this week! I loved what he said about the covenants we make at baptism. He said, "The Lord requires the heart and a willing mind. Our whole heart! When we are baptized, we are fully immersed as a symbol of our promise to fully follow the Savior, not half-heartedly." When we are fully committed to the Savior, we will offer our WHOLE souls.  What a great privilege it is to follow him.

Stretford Week 11

It's officially my last week in Stretford! I found out that I am transferring to Stoke/Newcastle. I'll be covering both wards, but they meet in the same building. I'm excited! My new companion is Sister Palavi and she is from Australia. I've heard she is a great missionary so I'm excited to work with her.

This week in Stretford has been good. One interesting experience we got to have was a late night street display outside a theatre showing The Book of Mormon musical. It just started this week and all of us missionaries in the area did it just to see if it was effective. It was interesting to see people's reactions. Some people thought we were part of the show. Thankfully we didn't so it every night (we were up pretty late) but it was definitely a good experience!

We also had a really amazing miracle this week with a woman named Rebecca. Sister Price had met her while on exchanges so we were calling by to see if she was home. We thought she was #30 on her street so we knocked and there was no answer. We were a bit sad but as we were walking down the street we started talking to this woman in her yard and she said she met us the other day on the street. Sister Price quickly realized that this was Rebecca and we had knocked on the wrong door on accident! It was such a miracle that she happened to be outside when we walked past. Sister Price and her new companion are visiting her again later this week.

Stretford Week 10

It has been a great week! We got to go on a few exchanges, Jay came to church again, and we went and saw a musical. The musical wasn't dodgy, I promise. It was called "Our Story Goes On" and it was the story of life told with songs from musicals. It was so good and a few of our friends were able to see it as well. It really helped me to have a grander perspective on life. We really are here for a purpose! It was nice to have that as a reminder.

We also got to go on a few exchanges this week. I worked with Sister Eldridge from Utah and Sister Robertson from Idaho. It was so nice to be able to work with them for a few days. It really is true that you can lose yourself in the service of others... this week has flown by!

This week is transfers, which means pday is next Tuesday and I'll know by them whether or not Im staying in Stretford. I'm thinking I'm going to stay but who knows?

I also had my interview with President McReynolds this week and he shared something really good with me that I wanted to share. He talked about how when we rely on ourselves there isn't much growth because we are doing things with our own power. But he said that if we rely on the Savior, that is when growth happens. It is only through our reliance on the Savior that we can become the people he would have us become. We really do need him every hour.

Stretford Week 9

It has been such a good week! We have seen many miracles! One really good experience that we had was with our friend Roger. We met with him for the first time this week and we were able to talk with him about the spirit. He has come to church a few times and has felt calm and peace there. The spirit was so strong as we testified of how this gospel can bless his life. The spirit is such a wonderful gift! At the end of the lesson the member we were with invited him to be baptized on June 29th. He said yes! It was so exciting.

Sister Price and I were also able to go on a few exchanges this week. I got to go with a lovely sister from France and it was so amazing. I got to learn so much from her about faith because she showed so much faith in God's timing. I really do know that if we trust in his timing that all things will work together for our good.

Nothing else too crazy is happening this week. Just lessons and finding and exchanges and joy! I love it!

Stretford Week 8

How has your week been? My week has been good. We have seen many miracles, especially with finding, and we were able to have 2 friends at church! The Lord is blessing this area at this time. I am grateful for this area and for the wonderful blessings I have seen here.

Our most progressing friends right now are Jay and Roger still. Jay came to church again this week. He told us he continues to have good "vibes" when he comes (we explained that was the Spirit). We met with him after church and had such a good lesson. We were able to introduce the Book of Mormon and testify of how it can help you with your challenges. He said he would read some of it and tell us how it goes next week after church. He seems to want to take it slow but he's progressing nonetheless!

Roger came to church again this week as well. He came with family from America that are members. We have our first lesson with him this Thursday so I'll let you know how it goes!

I was also able to study a little in Alma 42 about mercy and justice this week. God is perfectly just but he is also perfectly merciful. His only condition is that we have faith in him and repent. He lives each one of us so much and invited all to come into him. I am so grateful for the atonement of Jesus Christ that allows each of us to receive mercy.

Stretford Week 7

It has been such a great week! We have seen so many miracles this week. We're working with some great people at the moment. The first one, Jay, attended church last week. He came again this week and had a really good experience. One of the members of the ward invited him to dinner this week so we're having dinner with him this Thursday. It was such a miracle that his heart was softened and he came to church again.

Our other friend is named Roger and it was a huge miracle that he came to church. We'd never met him before but he just texted us and asked what time church was. We asked if he was planning on coming and he said yes! He came to church on Sunday and another member invited him to dinner as well! It was such a miracle. We get to meet with him tonight so I'll let you know how it goes.

We had Zone Conference and MLC this week too. We talked alot about conversion to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We talked about how the difference between a testimony and a conversion is your action. When we are truly converted to Christ, we have a desire to keep the commandments and to serve others. It really helped me have a desire to increase my own conversion. We also talked about how we can increase our own conversion, which is through diligent study and prayer. It was a very good meeting.

We were able to take this keyboard home from the church!

Stretford Week 6

It has been a good week! We have seen miracles and it has helped reaffirm to me that God is part of this work. The biggest miracle we saw was with our friend Jay. We met him on the street the other day but we weren't able to get any contact information for him. We were walking up to Church on Sunday and some man starts calling to us. It turns out it was Jay and he had just seen us as he was riding past on his bike. We invited him to come to church and he did! He said he felt something good there and that he wanted to keep on coming to see if he continued to feel that good feeling. We are meeting with him again this Wednesday. There are definitely no coincidences!

I got to go to temple today as well and it was such an amazing experience! We don't get to go often missionaries but it was good to be able to go and feel of the spirit there. I am so grateful for the temple!

This week we have zone conference and MLC so many experiences for learning. I'll let you know how it goes.

Stretford Week 5

It has been a good week! We found out transfers yesterday and I am staying with Sister Price in Stretford for another transfer. This transfer flew by because it was only 5 weeks so I am excited I get to stay and know my companion/the area better.

We had a difficult week this week in finding those that are prepared to hear the gospel. But yesterday we had a miracle that affirmed to me that when we do our part, God will do the rest. At the beginning of the day I was studying Preach My Gospel and I set the goal to talk to every single person that was set in our path. We try to do this everyday anyway but I really wanted to be an instrument in the Lord's hands. We were traveling to a member's when we started talking to someone on the bus. We found out a little into the conversation that she was actually a really good friend of the member and that she had always seen her friend as a good example. We invited this woman, Margaret, to church and she said she might come at some point. We also talked to the member about her and she said it was no coincidence that we met Margaret at that time. I agree, it was definitely no coincidence. God is aware of each one of us and he will place us in the paths of those we need to help (and those that will help us).

 

Stretford Week 4

Stretford Week 3

It has been a great week! My ankle and my cold healed so Sister Price and I were able to go out and work again. I got to go on exchanges with some of the sisters in the zone. I love getting to work with the sisters and I learn so much from them.

My faith that there are people being prepared definitely increased this week. We weren't able to find anyone last week because we were in the flat and on the beginning of Friday this week we had only found 1 person. I was feeling a little discouraged but I felt that if we just continued to work that eventually our efforts would be blessed. As we went throughout that day we were able to find so many people that were prepared! It was so exciting. I know the Lord blesses those that continue to work in faith.

The three of us from the MTC,and working at the Garden Center

Stretford Week 2

It's been a good week! We had zone conference this week, where we had a huge focus on the Book of Mormon. We talked about how incredible it is that we have the Book of Mormon today to serve as another testament of Jesus Christ. I agree, the Book of Mormon invites the spirit so much and helps us grow closer to God. 

We also got to watch conference this week. I loved being able to hear from men and women inspired of God. I loved Elder Hales talk on receiving answers to prayers. Your answer may come now, it may come later, and it may come after this life but when we trust in God it WILL come. The Lord loves each one of us and knows what is best for us to learn and grow.

I didn't do much else this week because we spent a few days in the flat because I was sick and sprained my ankle. But were hoping we'll get out more this week.

Stretford Week 1

It has been a great week! So much has changed but it's been good. I'm in a new area now. It's called Stretford and it's the family ward in Manchester City Centre. It's fun to be back in the city, though I miss the beauty of Wales. My new companion is Sister Price and she is so sweet. She's from Canada and we were in the MTC together. The area is good. There are loads of people all around and we get to meet people from different backgrounds. 

Something I've been pondering on a lot this week is faith. I read this great ensign talk on the faith to reap that talks about how we can gain those blessings that Heavenly Father desires to give to us. It asks us to have faith in Jesus Christ, align our wills with God's, and go to work. My favourite part of the talk was was when he talked about how faith can only make things happen when our desires are aligned with God's. God won't make something happen that is against his will. It helped me realize that if something didn't happen in the work and we did all we could that it must not have been God's will. That perspective requires a lot of trust in God but he also knows what is best for us.

This coming week we have zone conference. We get to give a training on the Book of Mormon. We also have MLC and splits with a couple of the sisters. It should be fun! I'll talk to you all next week! Love you all!

Gaerwen Week 23

It has been such a good week. We are seeing a lot of miracles again and I think the Lord is really blessing this area at the moment. Laura, our friend on date, passed her baptismal interview and is preparing for this Saturday. Everything is all planned and she feels ready so we are very excited for her. Brother Halligan is still doing great too. We moved the date forward 2 weeks to April 20th. We have been urging him to diligently study for this time before his baptism and he is taking it seriously.

We also had a big miracle with church attendance yesterday. Two member referrals we've been working with decided to attend church for the first time and they both had a really good time. Their names are Nick and Salmah. They must have felt the spirit because they both expressed a desire to come next week. With Nick, we haven't been able to meet with him as often as we'd had liked over the past few months but he has been studying the Book of Mormon despite that, which is definitely a miracle.

I also got to go on exchanges with one of my previous companions this week, Sister Viteri. It was so fun to be able to be with her for a day. We also have first 5 weeks this week so we'll get to travel to Manchester. We'll get our transfer calls too so I'll tell you how it goes.

Gaerwen Week 22

It's been a great week! We have seen a lot of miracles and were definitely being blessed. Our friend Laura, the one on date for the 23rd, is doing really great. We are visiting her pretty often in preparation for her baptism and all she has to say about her baptism is how excited she is. I agree, being baptised is definitely an exciting thing. She has her interview tomorrow and then her baptism next week. I am grateful that the Lord prepares the hearts of people to hear the gospel. 

Our friend Damien is also doing so well! He has been coming to church for 13 years with his wife but was hesitant to be baptised until he knew for sure. Last week he made the big step of setting a day for baptism to work towards. We explained that a witness comes after the trial of our faith and that setting a day for baptism would be that leap of faith that would help him receive an answer. I know that when we put our trust in the Lord he will not let us down.

Sister Larsen and I are still doing great. The missionaries in the area next to ours had to leave because of flat issues so we get to temporarily take over their area. We get to have exchanges again with the STL's this week as well. It's always fun to be able to work with other missionaries. But that's all for this week! Love you all!

Gaerwen Week 21

This week has been full of miracles. Our friends are progressing so much and we have definitely seen the Lord's hand in the work. Our most progressing friend at the moment is Laura Stone. She was taught by missionaries years ago and 3 of her sons were baptized but she never was because of challenges in her life. We had tried to stop by her house every few weeks but it turns out we were knocking on the wrong house. Last week, a member in the area directed us to her house and we were able to talk with Laura and her son Gethin. They had both felt recently that they needed to return to church and Laura's situation had changed to allow her to be baptized. We visited again this week and she accepted the invitation to be baptized on March 23rd. We reviewed the baptismal interview questions and she already believes that Joseph Smith is a prophet and that The Book of Mormon is the word of God. She is excited to be baptized in a few weeks. It seems that she has been waiting for this moment for a long time.

Our friend Morgan is also doing really well. We weren't able to meet with him this week but we've been communicating via email and he said he's been having a lot of success
with prayer. He says he's been having a hard time recently but that he has been comforted through praying to God. His Faith in Christ is definitely growing. We are meeting with him again this week.

We also had zone conference and exchanges with the STL's this week. Sister Viteri, one of my previous companions, is one of my STL's so it was so fun to be able to see her. I worked with Sister Paschen for the day and it was an amazing experience. It is always so good to be able to learn from their examples. At zone conference we also talked about how we can improve our companionship and personal study. We talked about how when we seek and write down promptings from the spirit, we are inviting further revelation into our lives. I know that when we seek the guidance of the spirit that we will always be guided in the right direction.

 

Gaerwen Week 20

This has been such a good week! We have seen quite a lot of miracles with our friend Morgan especially. We had a lesson with him on Thursday and there happened to be a YSA member of our ward that was able to help with the lesson. He prayed this week and he wasn't discouraged when he didn't receive an answer right away. He also came to church for the first time yesterday and he really enjoyed it. His Faith has been growing so much. We are hoping this week to set a day for baptism to work towards.

We also had a really good lesson with our friend Leon. He moved here from Spain and he understands the gospel so well. We taught him last night and we spoke about how the Book of Mormon adds to the Bible because we believe the Bible is the word of God as long as it is translated correctly. He totally agreed that the Bible wasn't perfect and wanted to know what additional knowledge the Book of Mormon gave us. We taught him a shortened version of the Plan of Salvation and he especially loved the 3 kingdoms. The Book of Mormon truly does add to the Bible.

Well that's all for this week! We have zone conference and exchanges this week so I'll let you know how that goes next week

Gaerwen Week 19

This has been a great week! I got a new companion, Sister Larsen, who is from Smithfield, UT. This is her first area but it has been fun to get to work with her. I've also been so excited about the new changes they're making for communicating with our families. How exciting! Don't worry, I'll still send a group email each week so you all can hear of the many miracles the Lord is working in Wales. 

We've met with some amazing people the last week. Last night we had a lesson with a friend of a member named Salmah. She has never heard of The Book of Mormon before but she was so intrigued to know where it came from and how we can know it is true. We bore our testimonies of the truthfulness of The Book of Mormon and she has agreed to read about it and pray to know for herself if it is true. The best part of the gospel is that we each can know for ourselves that these things are true as we sincerely pray.

We also got to speak more with our friend Morgan, who I mentioned in my last email. We didn't have the chance to meet with him this week but we called him a few days ago and he says he's been reading The Book of Mormon every night! I think it ties back to what he said about having a greater desire to read The Book of Mormon. I agree, as we take those first steps to read The Book of Mormon, we will have a greater desire to read it. And when we do feel that greater desire, we can know that that is an answer from the spirit confirming the truthfulness of The Book of Mormon.

Gaerwen Week 18

This has been a week full of miracles, especially with some of our friends that are now progressing more. I am grateful for the gift of the Holy Ghost that softens hearts and changes lives. The biggest miracle we saw this week was with our friend Morgan. We met Morgan while street contacting but all we were able to do was give him a card. About a week later, he texted us and agreed to meet. We first met with him last Monday and it seemed like he just had a general curiosity to learn more. We met with him again yesterday and in just a short time his faith had grown. He had read about 5 chapters of The Book of Mormon and said that he had a greater desire to read The Book of Mormon than any other religious text. He is going to continue studying The Book of Mormon and praying for an answer.

Bijan is also doing so well! We met with him last night and he says he has a testimony of Joseph Smith and The Book of Mormon. The spirit was so strong during the lesson. The only concern he share is that he desires to have a greater understanding of the gospel before he is baptized. I am hoping that as we share more about the gospel that he will feel the spirit more and make the decision soon to be baptized.

We also got our transfer calls this week! Sister Colinares is ending her missionary service and is returning to the Philippines and I'll be staying in Gaerwen and training a new missionary. I'm excited to see what these next few transfers will hold!

(in Chester we visited this cute lady, Netta)

Gaerwen Week 17

It has been a week full of miracles! We have seen a lot of miracles, espcially with our friend Mary. We first met Mary last Monday but she has laready progressed so much. We taught her the Plan of Salvation and her only comment was "it all makes sense". The Plan of Salvation does make sense! God is our loving Heavenly Father and it only makes sense that he would plan a way for us to progress and return to him. As Mary prayed about the Plan of Salvation, she said that she felt all of her fears and anxieties diminish. It strengthened my testimony of the power of the Spirit in helping us to become converted. We invited Mary to be baptized yesterday and she accepted! We are working towards March 9th as a goal. 

We also were able to attend the new member fireside in Chorley yesterday. Every first sunday of the month, the mission holds a fireside were those who have recently been baptized share their experiences. Moruf, our friend who was baptized at the end of December, was able to go and share his experience. I was most amazed at the dramatic change it made in each person's life as they accepted Jesus Christ into their life. One man shared that the biggest difference for him was the weight that lifted as he was forgiven for his sins. Another woman shared that she was finally able to feel the love that Heavenly Father had for her. Each was from a different background and circumstance but it helped each person in their own unique way. The Gospel of Jesus Christ truly does bless individuals and families.

This week we will also receive our transfer calls. My companions, Sister Colinares, is returning to the Philippines so I will most likely stay in gaerwen and receive a new companion. I love the Gaerwen area so i am excited to work here for another 6 weeks. 

Gaerwen Week 16

This week has been good! We saw a lot of progression with our friend Bijan. He has been attending church fairly regularly and has now read to 2 Nephi in the Book of Mormon. As we discussed the gospel with him, he reconized the difference it has made in the lives of his family. We helped him to recognize that these changes came from the gift of the holy ghost and he expressed a desire to have this gift! We are hoping we can set a baptismal date for him very soon.

We also saw a miracle with a less active part member family in the ward. The mother and father both used to attend church but have since become less active. One of their children, however, has been attending with her aunt, who is also the YW's president. We spoke with the father about teaching his daughter. He seemed open to the idea (which was surprising because he expressed often that he wasn't coming back to church) and he said that he would like all of the lessons to be taught in their home and for him to be present. His heart was definitely softened. We spoke to Chelsea (his daughter) about it and she has a desire to learn more. We are hopefully meeting with her this week.

I was reading Jesus The Christ this week and I loved reading about Christ's miracles. In each case, you can feel his love for the people and his desire to do his Heavenly Father's will. As I ponder on Christ, I am alwas grateful for the example that he was and the sacrifice her made. The scriptures truly testify of him and we can learn more about Christ as we study the scriptures.

From Letter to Mom:  I was thinking about something hard that i did this week and the hardest challenge for me at the moment has been staying positive even if we don't see success. I was reading about Jesus Christ in "Jesus The Christ" and in each miracle that he performed, it was according to the faith of the person. The change for me came when I realized that it is sometimes necessary for us to have trials so that our faith can be increased. As I've tried to stay faithful, I've been reassured that the promised blessings will come.

Our door approach is not very unique. We usually start by introducing ourselves as missionaries from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. If people don't recognize the church, we'll tell them that a nickname people have given us is Mormons but we help them to understand what the full name of the church is. We then ask them questions to get to know them better, such as if they believe in god or if they are religious. From there, we seek the guidance of the spirit to know what further questions to ask and what principles to testify of. Hopefully, if their hearts are softened, they will allows us to come back.

Traffic in Wales:

Gaerwen Week 15

This has been a great week! Our week started with exchanges with the STL's in stoke. I was with Sister Paschen and I loved working with her. We also had Zone Conference in Crewe, where we focused again on how we can become more consecrated. We discussed about how we are each here to act, not to be acted upon and that, because of this, we each can choose our responses regardless of the circumstances. I feel this is especially important when we are given trials. Through the plan of salvation, we know that all trials will help us progress. So, when we are given a trial, we can respond positively, knowing that it will help us to become more like our heavenly father.

I also wanted to share a miracle we saw when finding this week. Last week, we had met this girl named Livia who said we could meet this Friday afternoon. We had called her a few times but had never gotten a response so we weren't sure it would happen. We were stopping by people's homes in Caernarfon earlier that afternoon when we knocked on the door of a person that the neighbors had told us was a man from Canada that was a member of our church. We had knocked on his door a few times but hadn't met him yet. We knocked on this man's door, expecting to see a religious man from Canada, when Livia answered the door. It turns out that she lives at that house and that one of her roommates was this man that the neighbors thought was a member of our church (we found out he actually isn't). Sister Colinares and I couldn't help laughing for a bit because the odds of us knocking on her door were so minimal. We were able to talk with Livia for a bit and set a time to meet in the next week. It was definitely a faith building experience and it showed me that God is very aware of each of us.

Well, that is all for this week! Sister Colinares and I are doing great and enjoy it beautiful Wales

(The longest town name in the world)

Gaerwen Week 14

It's been a great week! We have seen many miracles and I know that God is very active in this work. Sister Colinares and I will only be together for 6 weeks but I am excited to be able to work more  with her.

To begin, our recent convert Moruf received the priesthood yesterday! It was a very special experience to be there and to hear the blessing that he was given. We have been talking with Moruf about the temple and he is very excited to attend. He is going to meet with the family history specialist and hopefully take some of his own ancestors to be baptized in the temple. It is amazing to see the joy the gospel can bring into our lives.

We also saw miracles this week in regards to being led to those that we needed to speak to. We were driving back from Caernarfon on Friday and I really wanted Subway for dinner. There is a Subway in Bangor (where we live) so we parked close to town and started walking in. As we were walking, we stopped and talked to this man on the street. It turns out that he knew one of the people we were meeting with and had attended church in Gaerwen several years ago. He knew one of the members of the ward quite well because he was the bishop at the time. He said that he had a few things to sort out but that after he did he would be interested in coming again! We thought it was quite odd that we happened to be there at that time but sometimes the Lord uses unusual methods (AKA our stomachs) to guide us to those that are being prepared.

I have also really enjoyed doing the new Come Follow Me program. This past week as we studied about Mary and Joseph and Elizabeth and Zacharias, I was thinking about each of their responses to the news of the Savior's birth. With Zacharias, he doubted that Elisabeth could have a baby in her old age. Because of his temporary lack of faith, he was struck dumb until the birth of his son. Mary's reaction was quite different. She immediately trusted in the Lord and his timing, even if she didn't understand why or how it would happen. As we fully trust in the Lord, especially during times of uncertainty, we can also know that "With God nothing shall be impossible". 

Letter to Mom:  A typical day starts with exercise, planning, getting ready, and studying. We finish our studies at 10am and if we have time we will also do companionship study right them. We find in the afternoons, usually by going to a specific area and stopping by people's houses that have been promising and street contacting in between. We've spent a lot of time in Caernarfon recently because there are a lot of families there. We then (hopefully) have appointments in the evening because it is dark. We eat tea maybe once or twice a week with a member. I always forget to pass around the tea list during church (and it's kind of awkward asking people to have us over for tea). Hopefully we can get more with the new year.

Gaerwen Week 13

Happy New years! Things are still going well here in Wales. My new companion's name is Sister Colinares and she is from the Philippines. This is also her last transfer on her mission so I will most likely be staying in Gaerwen for another two transfers, which I am very happy about because I love this area!

We have seen a lot of miracles in our area recently. A recent one was just last week when we were planning on calling by a few less actives in the Carmel area on Saturday. We were planning on starting at a house that was a bit farther away but as we were traveling there we passed another less active's house. We felt inspired to stop at their house and we were able to catch him at home. His wife and daughter were also there (neither of which are baptized) and they agreed to have us over! The prompting of the spirit will never lead us astray!

I've also really enjoyed the new come follow me program, especially with the greater emphasis on strengthening our families. I remember Gordon B Hinckley once saying that his greatest fear was the deterioration of the family that was occurring as the world got more wicked. I know that the prophet does receive revelation because this is exactly what each of our families need in order to withstand the spiritual whirlwinds that are sure to come.