It's been another lovely week here in the Texas Dallas Mission!
Here are some updates and miracles and stories!
Wednesday we had lunch with OR. It started as just a nice casual conversation, but then Sister OR really opened up to us on a bunch of things that she has been going through lately. We read a little poem called, "He's Been There" talking about the Savior and how He understands the up-and-downs, not only of missionary work, but of life in general. The visit resulted in all of us crying, but we were all able to find healing as we discussed the Atonement. Then little AN brought out some necklaces he had bought for us. It was so sweet. Not even the fact that he had bought necklaces, but the fact that he thought about us and wanted to do something nice for us.
GA & AN! They were a referral from some missionaries in Plano. We initially met them last week, and we had a follow-up visit this week. We taught the Plan of Salvation and had a great discussion. GA loves the fact that we lived with God as his Spirit children before this life. In the closing prayer, she said she was so grateful for us and prayed that we would be able to come back. Previously, they had told us they wouldn't be able to come to church because they had church at the same time. But they texted yesterday to see if they could come!! Sadly, we didn't see the text in time, but we were grateful that they are willing! They even gave us a referral for their niece - the one who lost her daughter.
Zone Meeting on Friday! Wow, our zone is great. :) It was a fairly casual meeting, but I was definitely fed by the Spirit. As of late, our mission has been focusing on talking to everyone, asking for referrals, offering baptism up front, and getting people to church. We had some really good discussions on how we can do this. Afterwards we went to Torchy's Tacos and 15 of us squished around a table.
KR loves the gospel. She loves church. She loves the members. If you could keep her in your prayers that would be lovely!
We went on exchanges from Friday-Saturday night with the Prosper sisters! It was so fun! I was with Sister Taylor. She's just two weeks into the mission, and it is so lovely to see her enthusiasm and love for the work and for the people. She was so excited to come to Dallas, and we had a BOOYAH day.
-- We saw a lady named JE who, along with her mother and daughter, is a member of the church, but very less-active. She recently had a baby, and she's decided that church and the gospel is where she wants the baby raised. We had a nice lesson at the park. The weather was perfect, and we had a great discussion about the Restoration.
-- Some of my previous mission experience was able to help me as Sister Taylor and I were brainstorming finding ideas and ways to work with members up in their area. I was so grateful for the experiences that I've had, particularly in Allen and McKinney, to be able to help get the ideas flowing. Definitely a testimony builder that everything happens for a reason.
-- So Brother MA had give us a referral for his friend, DO. We drove up and parked, and Brother MA walked out of his house that very second! It was good. We knocked on her door together. Sadly, she wasn't there, but the timing was just wonderful. We ended up sharing a scripture with the MA family who seemed to appreciate it. Definitely a blessing.
-- We had dinner with the WA family. They LOVE seafood and they love to serve us seafood, so I'm always a happy camper there. But Sister WA was also able to help encourage and lift Sister Taylor and give her some good ideas on working with members. PLUS, they had lemon sorbet for dessert. Happy camper over here.
Sunday was awesome! Sister Greenall and I were both able to speak in sacrament meeting in the Garland 1st Ward. I spoke about being an everyday, full-time, full-purpose member of the church.
Here's a little snippet from my talk:
"Being a member is so much more than coming to church for 3 hours on Sunday. It's so much more than just having a membership record. It's 1 Peter 3:15 - it's about LIVING the gospel and sharing the gospel and just being a good example to the people around us. It's easy to get caught up in the day to day. Trust me. I've been there. It's easy to say, Oh, I'm going to church and I say a prayer every day. It's so much more than just checking items off on a to-do list. It's about BECOMING like the Savior and growing and developing Christlike attributes. It's about strengthening our testimonies, deepening our conversion, and being courageous in standing up for our beliefs. It's reaching out and helping our family members, friends, neighbors, acquaintances, and even just people at the grocery store or gas station . . ."
I definitely got a little excited during the talk, but it was good. After sacrament meeting, a sister came up to us and asked which wards we covered. We told her the Garland 1st and Lake Highlads. She was so happy to hear that. Her daughter lives in the Lake Highlands boundaries and has been through an emotional and difficult divorce. The mom had been praying for help and she brought her little granddaughter to church. She said that as we spoke, the Spirit told her that we could be the missionaries to help out her daughter. We chatted for awhile and hopefully we'll be meeting with them this week. It is such a testimony builder to me. The Lord is so good and so mindful of his children.
After church, we headed over to AM's house to teach her and her family in follow-up of last week. We shared the Restoration using the pamphlet. Amanda bore a powerful testimony of the First Vision and how she came to know that the gospel is true. The Spirit was so strong! DE, AS and SA all accepted a baptismal date! We all testified of the gospel helping families, and even DE agreed that he had seen the change. So awesome!
The verses and chapters we have been reading this week have been amazing! Alma, Ammon, and Aaron are such powerful missionaries and they truly lay out the principles, challenges, and ideas of successful missionary work! We are so blessed to have a record of their experiences to teach us and help us. Also, I definitely felt God's love shining down on me on Thursday. We had a hectic morning schedule and didn't have time to study before some of our lessons. I definitely gained a testimony of PREPARATION. But anyway, after I ate lunch, I sat down to study the Book of Mormon, and the chapters that I was reading were perfect. Alma 7:11-13 - "and he will take upon him their infirmities, that his bowels may be filled with mercy, according to the flesh, that he may know according to the flesh how to succor his people according to their infirmities." Wow, such a testimony builder that the Lord knew what I needed to read that day.
Also, I read a really cool scripture in D&C 109:44 -- "Help thy servants to say, with thy grace assisting them: Thy will be done, O Lord, and not ours." We can and we must use grace to be able to say, "thy will be done." I know that His Atonement gives us the strength and ability to live the gospel. Christ's gospel saves and changes lives. I love Him.
Thanks for all you do for me and for the world! I love ya!
Love,
Sister Gilbert
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