Updation (word I made up)
Lucy:
Lucy is a gem earlier this week she was super nervous to come to church. She is such a blessing to me. When you think of teaching people on your mission you think of it going exactly as it goes with Lucy. She understands what you must do to change and her heart is in it Ready to do so. It’s such a blessing it really is. I know she needs things to go slow and my time is running out so I won’t get to be here for her baptism but I’m just so excited for her to get there.
Later in the week when we saw her she was very bold with her husband in front of us. She told him that basically he needs to learn and be supportive because she’s getting baptized whether or not he’s on the same page but she so deeply wishes he would be. Johnny knows what he needs to be doing it just seems that he’s not willing to do it right now.
The amount of faith and trust in that woman is awe-inspiring. Her desire to change. Last time we visited her and read Alma 36, she deeply related to the story of repentance. When we came back she had it all highlighted and had read it over again.As we talked about the importance of keeping God’s commandments we read with her Mosiah 2:41 and she stops and says, “I like it, wow I really like it... I like it so much I’m going to highlight it.” She then gets up and runs to get her highlighter.She is a sponge for spiritual knowledge. She does exactly what we invite her to do because she sees that it will help her, it’s never out of an obligation to us. She has been prepared to receive this gospel. On Sunday she came to the church first time. She had not been in any church nearly all her life. During testimony meeting she just cried and cried and cried. Looking over at her I couldn’t help but shed a few tears watching what the gospel has done for her.
Danielle and Eli:
Still crazy lessons. Eli is super tired and busy but he’s trying to make his best effort. Spirit promoted us to a new idea this week we’re going to go forward to try. There is this family we have been helping reactivate. Husband speaks Spanish and Eli speaks mostly only Spanish so we are going have him fellowship hopefully they both can grow.
Strahley Family:
Unfortunately they are without a place to live right now so we have been praying for them a whole lot. Our bishop has been amazing to them and so willing to help so he’s now helping them out. We are going to have dinner with all of them tomorrow.
Anicesha:
It has been a roller coaster week. Earlier this week she was on cloud 9. She loved Conference got many answers there, we had an appointment on Monday night but we never heard from her and knowing her that was really strange.
She ignored us pretty much all week. She said she was really sad because of her whole living situation. Later in the week we found out that she read some not so correct info on the Internet. Happens a lot. Super frustrating.
But her attitude was dropping and she was becoming sadder, so she was with a member most of the week. Saturday night she got a priesthood blessing and everything changed. After the blessing she said, “I feel all warm inside is that normal?” Then she came to church even though we thought she wouldn’t be able to come. In third hour during some testimonies of the sisters she just broke into tears. After church she texted us and said she got her answer, this is place for her. Keep her in your prayers. She is going through a lot of different challenges right now but she knows she’s in the right place.
Alberto Gomez
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| Alberto's Baptism |
On Friday On the way to DL/ZL/STL we got a call that a man from my first area was getting baptized the next day! So we quickly made arrangements and found a ride.Saturday morning we had a breakfast at the church and did our studies. Sister Blackwelder (who was taking us to the baptism) picked us up and we drove out to Lake Crescent.
The baptism was for Alberto Gomez. I helped reactive the Gomez family almost a year ago. We were the first ones to contact them in years and her son has now been baptized and her husband Alberto was baptized on Saturday. Petra is the wife and it was so good to see her, I gave her a hug and she just beamed with joy as she said, “Finally, finally my family is all baptized”
This week was a lot of ups and downs. Satan worked really hard on me.
I’m a bit of a perfectionist. I thought I’d be a lot better at a lot of things by now that I’m not. I’ve learned of many of my weaknesses. I knelt in prayer in the study room and I just cried and cried I asked for forgiveness for my shortcomings. I asked for help to be better. I asked for mercy and meekness and charity. I cried out that I have taught and believed and preached that hearts can be changed and I needed so desperately to feel that, that is actually true. And honestly I just felt like there was noise. Noise in my head and I still felt no release. I prayed and prayed but I went to bed feeling maybe a little eased but still empty.After many good conversations with companion (who is an angel) I discovered that really Satan is just attacking me because I’m returning home soon.
So this time I took the sacrament the way I always should. I didn’t use it as a time to reflect on the shortcomings in which I have already repented for but I took it has a time to be filled by my Savior who suffered the pain with me and for me that I might be healed through Him.
I can testify that if we look at the sacrament the way it should be viewed we will be filled! We will look forward to every Sunday and we repent daily and consistently, we can be filled in partaking of the sacrament. I was.
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| The last scripture we read before she left on her mission. |
- Sister Sorensen🌞
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