Monday, July 1, 2013

June 24, 2013 - Lake Reams


Hey family,
How are you? I hope everything is going well for you. Well this week was pretty good, we found 2 new investigators and that was awesome. The woman's name is Heather Hill; she is a friend with a family in our ward, the Shoffs. And we were able to go to her house this week and start teaching her, she really has liked our lessons and she really loves that we believe that families can be together forever, and that we have a place to go after this life. She said she used to get really bad anxiety when thinking about death and what was going to happen to her and her family to the point where she would have a total panic attack, so you can only imagine that she absolutely loved what we had to say. She really wants to learn from us and progress but she really wants her husband and 2 kids to be on board too, that shouldn't be a problem for the kids, they are friends with other kids in the ward, the daughter actually went to girls camp with the Stake this last week so that is awesome. I think her husband would be the only struggle, but I can't judge that yet because I haven't met him. Heather also is the only one working in the family right now and that really stressed her out, her husband just lost his job, and so she works on Sunday, I pray that things will work out and that she will be able to come to church with her family. I know that the whole family will be able to grow together in the gospel and come closer to Jesus Christ, I know that, that will bring them closer to one another and the love and unity that will grow between them will be amazing. The other woman is named Ashley, and she is quite the find too, we were tracting about 3 weeks ago and a boy answered the door, about 15 and we asked if a parent was home and he said no, but that his mom is religious and he gave us her number and said we could come back. So we left and just thought, that's going nowhere. Usually when kids answer the door they just don't know what to say and usually say uh well talk to my mom or whatever, but non the less we decided to come back and for weeks we tried and nothing. Well finally one day we came back to her house and Ashley answer the door and said my son told me about you, what are you doing? And so we explained that we were missionaries that we were spreading a message that Jesus is the Christ and that His gospel has been restored through a living prophet and she was like really? and we said yes and she was like you really come out here to do this? How old are you and so we said we are 20 and we are out here full time for a year and a half spreading the gospel and she was very amazed, she sais that is very impressive that us young girls choose to use our time this way, teaching people about Jesus Christ, and she said she would love to meet with us and ask questions and see what we were all about, and Sister Low and I were a little shocked, but very excited. So we set an appointment with her and it fell through, and for 3 more appointments we set they fell through, until finally she called us one night and said I am so sorry I've been busy can I meet you tomorrow at 11, and we were like YES! So on Saturday we met in the park and taught a really solid restoration lesson and she thought it was very good. We gave her a Book of Mormon and committed her to read it and she said she would, it was SO AWESOME! We also were able to meet with 2 potential investigators this week, one named Nancy that we have been trying to see fro weeks and has never been home and another woman named Barbra. They both really like Sister Low and I and we have been going by and visiting them when they have actually been home and we have been able to share short messages with them, I think they could become investigators real quick:) On Thursday we got to go to the temple and do temple service again, I love doing temple service.  We trimmed hedges and pulled weeds and just made the grounds look really clean and sharp, it is so nice to be there with all the missionaries in the zone hanging out doing service, seriously my favorite day of the week. We also had an awesome world wide training last night, I hope you guys went to it and if not look it up online and watch it! It is so inspired and has a lot of great council on how we are to be forwarding missionary efforts.  One thing I have realized very clearly on my mission is that tracting is about 2 % effective and really the work and progress comes from working together with the members and ward council. President Hinckley talked about in one of his conference addresses that missionary work is going to be most effective through working with the members and that is absolutely true.  I am almost mad that I didn't do more to help the missionaries while I was at home; there is so much I could have done to help the work.  The prophet Joseph Smith says in D&C that the most important work we can do is to preach the gospel and that is 100 and a million percent true.  We should always be looking for ways that we can spread the gospel and help lift others and bring them unto Jesus Christ.  In Moroni 7 verse 48 it says when he shall appear we shall be like Him, and is it a coincidence that charity is talked about so much in that chapter? I think not!  When we have true charity, we are truly concerned for the eternal salvation and happiness for those around us, we love others and we do what we can to build up the Kingdom of God, our will literally becomes Moses 1:39- our work becomes to help to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man. Of course we cannot give eternal life and immortality, for only God can do that, but what we can do is have charity and help build the Kingdom. We literally will be like God, that is what it promises and when we are like Him we will be doing exactly what His will is, that is why Charity is above all, because that is the very center of what the gospel is. I challenge all of you to think of what you can do better in our life to help you come closer to the Savior, repent and ask for help that you can do better, and as you try you WILL feel the hand of the Lord in your life and pray for missionary experiences.  Missions are not only for the missionaries, they are for every single person, and we should all be doing missionary work everyday. I am going to expect all of you to e-mail by next week telling me what you have done to help you come closer to the Savior and what miracles you have seen with having missionary experiences that you pray for.  I promise as you do this the Lord WILL give them to you. Don't forget to pray and read your scriptures, in Matthew 10:28 it gives us a clear warning; we need to avoid Satan because he is one who truly brings destruction and unhappiness. Satan is too cleaver and he knows exactly how to carefully bit by bit lead us away from the Savior. We cannot be lazy in our scripture study and church attendance, we need to do things that are going to keep the spirit always, anger, misunderstanding and discouragement are some of the most powerful tools he has.  Do not let anything create a wedge between you and the Savior because that is exactly what he wants.  It is amazing to see how little things can sway people so easily, I hear people talking about crude, awful things everyday, yet when we come around to talk about the Savior, it then becomes awkward or weird or something "we don't talk about".  The Savior gives us the easiest guidelines possible to keep ourselves clean and pure, and standards to help us become better and to draw closer to Him, and I know they will do exactly that. I love you all and I hope that you are doing well. I love being a missionary even though it is seriously the hardest thing in the world, there isn't anything on this earth I would rather being doing right now. I hope that as you pray for miracles and exercise your faith that you will be able to see the blessings that come, I know Heavenly Father is just waiting to bless us, but unless we ask we won't receive. I love you so much, have a wonderful week!
Love, Sister Jamison

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