Miracles and hard work - just the way I like it. 8.3.2015

Hello hello!

This has been another amazing week of miracles and hard work - just the way I like it.

I'll just share some of my thoughts and some of the miracles I've seen.

Tuesday we had a wonderful lesson with RA - a returning less-active. She expressed to us that she would like to be taught all the lessons, so she can regain her foundation. We were at a members home - the Meagers. So we briefly told her what all the concepts are, and asked if she had questions. She had a question about tithing, so we discussed that. But then after we had a really good discussion about trials and how the gospel of Jesus Christ can give us relief and peace from the craziness of the world. I had the opportunity to testify to RA that Heavenly Father loves her so much and has good things for her. We ended up showing her the Mormon Message "Good Things to Come" the story of Elder Holland's adventures with a broken down car. My favorite quote from that clip applies so much to my life and to the people I get to work with. "Don't you quit! You keep walking. You keep trying. There is help and happiness ahead. Some blessings come soon. Some come late, and some don't come till Heaven. But for those who embrace the gospel of Jesus Christ, they come. It will be all right in the end. Trust God, and believe in good things to come."

Wednesday we had the opportunity to go to mission leadership council. We had a crazy experience getting there though. So our zone leaders asked us if we could get there 30 minutes early for a brief meeting. We happily agreed and made plans to pick up the Hermanas down near downtown Dallas. So we set off 1.5 hours before the meeting, in order to get there in time. As we're driving down the road, there was a car in the median with its hood up and three people standing around. We were stopped due to traffic so we rolled down the window and asked if they needed help. They said, "YES! We need a jump start." So we flipped a u-turn and pulled up on the median. After a prayer and lots of tries, we were eventually able to get their car started, but it was amazing because one of the ladies in the car was a less-active who had been trying to just find the church and a ride to it for over 3 years! She was so happy to see us. Needless to say, we weren't able to give the Hermanas a ride or make it to the meeting 30 minutes early, but it was so fulfilling to be able to help someone and find one of the lost sheep. I am certainly not a believer in coincidences, so that was just other beautiful manifestation of Heavenly Father's awareness and love for his children. 

Wednesday and Saturday we had lovely lessons with ST - another returning less-active. We read and talked about "Where Justice, Love, and Mercy Meet" and discussed the Atonement. I am so grateful for the Atonement and for the love Jesus offers all of us. It's such a blessing.

I went on my first exchange as a Sister Training Leader on Friday with Sister Reboquio in Heath. She is such an amazing missionary. We saw so many miracles and were able to teach 5 RCLAs! It was wonderful. The last visit of the evening definitely stuck out to me the most though. Her name is HM, and the bishop had requested that the missionaries visit her. So we went over, and HM ended up telling us that she didn't like coming to church because she hadn't had anyone reach out to her. We ended up sharing the "Because of Him" Easter video and talked about the Atonement. Sister Reboquio bore a powerful testimony that Jesus Christ is always there reaching out to us, waiting for us to accept His love. Truly my heart was touched. HM ended up expressing deep gratitude for our visit that evening. Following the visit, Sister Reboquio told me of a commitment she's going to extended to active members - to reach out to 5 people you don't know at church. It was a good reminder to me of the important work we can do with the members.

While I was away, Sister Durrant was able to set 2 baptismal dates in our area, so that was way awesome. 

To wrap up the week, we were able to contact a referral Sunday evening and teach her the Restoration. It's just so amazing how the Spirit will lead us to the places we need to be in order to bless the people we meet. I am so grateful for that. Following that lesson, we had dinner with  our stake patriarch and his wife - a delicious meal of steak stir-fry, rice, and carrots and then grilled peaches with a peach puree, fresh honey, and mint on top. I'd have to say that was one of my favorite desserts I've had on my mission. Yum.

Oh man. Being a missionary is the greatest. I am so thankful for all the lessons I get to learn and for all the wonderful people I get to meet. This is truly a blessed time of my life.

I love each of you! Have a beautiful day!

Love,

Sister Gretchen Gilbert