I can't believe it's the last week of September already! This past
week has been a rough but good week! It is definitely hard to be a
missionary sometimes but it's all worth it! We saw many miracles and
had some really good lessons with our investigators and less actives!
At the beginning of the week Sister McKee came into our area to work
with us! We had many spiritual experiences and had a really
great lesson with Priscila, and read in the Book of Mormon together. It
truly is amazing to see Priscila light up when things make sense to
her! We had district meeting the next day and our district leader
gave a training on how important it is to "teach people, not lessons".
Meaning we teach people based on their needs and what the spirit wants
us to teach them, and not just plowing through the lessons to get them
done! I think that training was so inspired because that's something
as a missionary we need to recognize......what people really need to hear in
order for them to understand and truly become converted.
We had a great lesson with Gladys and one of the returning less
actives that we have been working with in our ward, Donna Ormond, came
to the lesson with us and it was amazing! Before Donna joined the
church she was apart of the same church as Gladys is right now, and
Donna shared her conversion story with Gladys to show how she knew this
was the one and only true church. It was great to have her there and
then after the lesson Donna stayed to visit with her and come to find
out they visited for about 3 hours after we left. When we went back
to have another lesson with her a couple days later Gladys told us she
wants to become part of this church (Miracle)! We can't wait to
continue meeting with her!
On Thursday Sister Carter and I had the wonderful opportunity to go
to the San Antonio Temple! It was my first time going since on my mission
and one of our members was so kind to take us! It was a great
experience! I just love the temple so much! One thing that is
unique in this temple that I love is that every window is stain-glass!
It's Beautiful!!
This weekend we were able to attend the Woman's Broadcast at our
Stake Center! It was amazing and I loved everything the speakers
spoke about! I especially loved the talk given by Dieter F.
Uchtdorf! "NEVER GIVE UP!! FOURTH FLOOR, LAST DOOR!" I've had many
experiences on my mission when having faith to keep going.....not giving
up lead to many miracles!! The Lord is preparing his people! I can't
wait for General Conference this week!
Sunday we had an amazing Relief Society lesson. I would like to
share with y'all a quote that was shared during this lesson. This is
from Chieko Okazaki, a former General Relief Society President of the
Church. She said...
"We know that Jesus experienced the totality of mortal existence in
Gethsemane. It's our faith that he experienced everything--
absolutely everything. Sometimes we don't think through the
implications of that belief. We talk in great generalities about the
sins of all humankind, about the suffering of the entire human family.
But we don't experience pain in generalities. We experience it
individually. That means he knows what it felt like when your mother
died of cancer--how it felt for your mother, how it still is for you.
He knows what it felt like to lose the student body election. He
knows that moment when the brakes locked and the car started to skid.
He experienced the slave ship sailing from Ghana toward Virginia. He
experienced the gas chambers at Dachau. He experienced napalm in
Vietnam...He knows about drug addictions and alcoholism. On a
profound level, he understands about the hunger to hold your baby that
sustains you through pregnancy. He understands both the physical pain
of giving birth and the immense joy. He understands about rape and
infertility and abortion...He understands your mother-pain when your
five-year-old leaves for kindergarten, when a bully picks on your
fifth-grader. He knows your mother rage...when someone gives your
thirteen year old drugs, when someone seduces your seventeen year old.
He knows the pain you live with when you come home to a quiet
apartment where the only children are visitors, when you hear that
your former husband and his new wife were sealed in the temple last
week, when your fiftieth wedding anniversary rolls around and your
husband has been dead for two years. He knows all that. He's been
there. He's been lower than all that. He's not waiting for us to be
perfect. Perfect people don't need a Savior. He came to save his
people in their imperfections. He is the lord of the living, and the
living make mistakes. He's not embarrassed by us, angry at us, or
shocked. He wants us in our brokenness, in our unhappiness, in our
guilt and grief" (Chieko Okazaki 1993)
And I would like to add, he wants us to seek Him.
It is my testimony that the Lord knows that we are not going to be
perfect. That's why He provided us with a Savior. So we can overcome
the mistakes we make. I am so grateful for the trials and experiences
that I've had in my life that taught me to choose Christ. To seek Him
first. I am grateful for his unending love! I hope y'all have a great
week!
Con Amor,
Hermana Mann
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