Family!
Only two more days! Can you believe it? When I first came out I remember feeling like Christmas would never come, and here we are. Time continues to fly by. We've had some unusually warm weather the past few days, so the snow has melted away and it seems our white Christmas has turned into a green one. I would like to think Spring has come early, but somehow I don't think that's actually the case. We have has a wonderful week! We are teaching a lot, and still having fun in the process. I'm happy to finally be able to update you on investigators!
We had a lesson with Ruth this past week, and she is GOLDEN. I don't normally use that term with investigators, but with Ruth it is the best way to describe her. She is in her fifties, divorced with a couple grown children, and she works as a counselor for recovering heroine addicts. She is funny, sweet, and really has a positive outlook on life. She grew up going to and learning about a lot of different churches, and she has always been curious about the Mormon faith.When our church building was first being built, she used to pass by it and say, "One day I want to go in there" However, she refused to randomly go in on a Sunday, and the other days of the week she passed by it there were never any cars in the parking lot. But, about a month ago she passed it on a Monday evening, and there happened to be some sort of conference going on for parents of kids with disabilities. So, she walked into the church, ran into the elders who were there for p-day, and asked them how she could join the church. That's basically her story! So far she has been completely accepting of everything we teach. We taught her the Plan of Salvation this past week, and she kept saying, "Yeah, that makes sense." She is somewhat of an analytical person (she reminds me of Alexis in that way), but at the same time she recognizes the importance of receiving answers from God. One thing I absolutely love about her is her prayers, She gave the closing prayer of our lesson and opened it by saying, "Hi God, it's me Ruth..." Haha, it was so cute, but it was also a great reminder to me about what a prayer should be. When we pray, we are literally talking with our Father in heaven. As members of the church we often get caught up with how our prayers "sound" when in reality our concern should be whether or not we are sincerely conversing with Him. Anyway, Ruth is wonderful, and we are hoping to keep her baptism date for the beginning of February! Because of her work schedule it is difficult for her to come to sacrament meeting (although she has come once already). but with the meeting change starting in January she will be able to start coming consistently!
We also picked up a new investigator! Her name is Mia, and she is the sweetest lady. She is actually a referral from another member who became friends with her because their kids go to the same school. This member has tried many times to get Mia to meet with the missionaries, but this was the first time Mia actually committed to a time. We taught her the Restoration, and it went really well. The Spirit was strong as we talked about the Atonement and Mia was able to share some of her experiences. She talked about what a wonderful impact this member's love and support has had on her, and it was a really sweet moment. Again, it was reconfirmed to me how important members are in missionary work. At the end of the lesson, Sister Henrichson invited Mia to church and to have a lesson with her in her home. I know her support and encouragement will be a huge help to Mia's progression.
Along with good lessons, we had some fun experiences as well! I got to do exchanges with a Spanish speaking sister, and that was an interesting experience :) I sat through a lesson that was ALL in Spanish, and I literally had no idea what was going on. I felt like a new missionary all over again ;) Also, we have been doing a LOT of caroling this past week! Us and the elders originially planned to just carol to members, but we ended up caroling to random houses as well. It's our one opportunity to knock on peoples' doors with the assurance that they won't slam the door in our faces. I'd say it was a pretty good tactic! We actually had a pretty cool experience come of it. One elder felt impressed to carol to a particular house, An older lady answered and you could tell it meant a lot to her as she listened. The next day we told a member, Sister Merris, that we randomly caroled to her neighbor, and she was so thrilled. She said this woman had lost her husband suddenly just about a year ago, and this time of year is really hard for her. She said she knew it wasn't a coincidence that that elder picked that house to carol to. I am so grateful for the little miracles that happen all the time.
I am grateful for this time of year to celebrate the birth, life, and Atonement of our Savior. He was the ultimate gift our Father in heaven could give, and I hope I can do all I can to show my appreciation. I know it is by giving our will to God that we can truly say, "Thank you." I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas! Thanks for all your love. It gives me the strength I need. Love you all!
Love,
Sister Denney
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