Week 19: MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!! :)

December 21, 2015

This week was pretty wonderful! I feel super scatter-brained and everything.. probably because I'm so excited to Skype my family on Christmas, but... I will try to make this email seem somewhat coherent. :) 

On Monday we went on base for a Family Home Evening activity where we made a super cute vinyl nativity.. it was wonderful and it is super cute, so that's awesome! We have it up in our house. Maybe I'll attach a picture so you can all see it. :) 

On Tuesday we found ourselves with only enough time in the afternoon before our dinner appointment to contact one person, so we decided to go stop by a family that we hadn't been to in a while because the husband wasn't very interested. Anyway.. we felt prompted to stop by, and when we got there, it looked like no one was home... BUT! We decided to go knock on the door anyway, because we were already there and everything, and the man's wife, Eva, answered the door. We introduced ourselves and told her that her husband had said that we could stop by some other time to see his wife, and she was like, "Oh, wonderful! Come on in!" Literally I'm pretty sure my jaw dropped, because that like never happens.... BUT! We went in, got to know her a little bit, and then transitioned into talking about the Book of Mormon and the Restoration of the Gospel. Apparently she has met with missionaries in the past and was going to get baptized, but then her husband didn't agree, so she didn't... but, their best friends are LDS, and an LDS family that we were trying to go visit who moved used to live in their house and that's how we found them... So basically, she thought that Joseph Smith's friend or something wrote The Book of Mormon, and she was confused about that... but then we talked to her and told her about how The Book of Mormon was actually written in 600BC, and she was like, "So.. do you have a copy?" SO.. needless to say, we're super excited to keep teaching her. :)

We also finally got the MTC materials for learning Sign Language this week, and so we can study for real now.. we keep trying to stop by and teach them, but no one is ever home.. so maybe Heavenly Father was just waiting for us to have the material so we can actually learn something coherent before we go over there and they're home to teach. Hopefully, anyway. :) 

We went to go visit Ron this week and get him to go to ARP (Addiction Recovery Program) so he can start the process of quitting smoking again, and it was super awkward because they said they weren't going to go, but we really knew they needed to, so we went over to their house and taught them a quick lesson and we just so happened to end exactly at 7:18 (ARP starts at 7:30 - for sure not a coincidence), and I was like, "Hey! No way! Ron and Shannon.. did you know that if we were to leave your house right now we would get to the church on time for ARP to start!?" They looked at each other and were like, "Okay, fine, we'll go." It was awesome, and they had an amazing lesson on experiencing a change of heart, so it was perfect!! I love how the Lord works!! 

I had exchanges this week with Sister Worthen (she came out a transfer after me) and the whole beginning of the day was just going really poorly. Every one we went to visit just didn't want to hear it, wouldn't answer their door, or something... BUT! Then we said a prayer and decided to go to an area to visit an Investigator who we thought probably wasn't home, but we decided to follow the prompting anyway.. Then we saw this man walking with his hood up and decided to talk to him and it turns out it was one of our Less-Active members and we asked him if we could come over and see him and his wife and he said yes! So we went over and taught them, and had a super nice lesson with them and found out that this man, Brother Dack, needs to get baptized! SO.. basically we found a new investigator! So neat how the Lord continually places people in our paths to bless and to help. I just love it! Then we went and saw the person we were originally there to see, Greg. He still insists on getting baptized before his surgery, but he isn't looking so great, so hopefully he'll change his mind and have his heart surgery so he can even get baptized. Then we went to a dinner appointment and they gave us a name of someone we could go visit, and we went to Janette's house (our 80 yr old investigator), and had a heart to heart with her. We have been telling her for months that the only way she is going to get an answer to weather or not the Church is true is to read The Book of Mormon. We always commit her to read and she never does. So, that night, I just got super sad that we have been telling her and telling her and she just hasn't been doing it, and I ended up starting to cry while I bore my testimony to her, and it was crazy. We're taught as missionaries to be devastated when people don't keep their commitments, and this was the first time I think that I genuinely have been.. it was such a tender experience. She set a game plan to read the Book of Mormon finally, and so that was super neat. :) 

In other news, we've gotten a lot of snow this week, and so one day we carved into a bush "A Savior is Born" and took pictures with it. Hopefully someone felt happy about that when they saw it. That video is amazing!!!! If you haven't seen it yet, go and watch it.. That's the best option! :) christmas.mormon.org ! :) Kids talking about Christ and Christmas.. Heart melter for sure! :) Also, we were leaving for a dinner appointment and I totally biffed it for the first time this season on the snow, so that was fun! It may have been more icy than I had originally anticipated. We also got our car stuck in the snow, so that was awesome! Luckily there were some really nice fellows that came out and helped us get out of the snow! We're going to make them cookies so that will be a good time, :) 

Then we went to a dinner appointment and the members' five little kids were crawling all over us, and it's so hard to not be able to hold them and play with them! :) ..that's probably the hardest part of missionary work.. seriously.. not the people yelling at us and slamming doors, but just the fact that I can't hug and hold little kids, haha.. 

Also, Stephanie finally came back from Montana!!.. we felt like we should stop by, even though we had already been there in the morning and she wasn't home yet, but we went back and she was there!! We did some service for her, and then taught her a lesson. It was the happiest of days! :) ALSO!!! MIRACLE!!! She was going to move at the end of this month, but the way things are working out, she won't be moving until the end of January! It's the best because that means that we can teach her more!! :) 

Well, friends, family, loved ones, I hope that you each have the merriest Christmas! :) I am so grateful for the blessing of being able to be a missionary and to have the blessing of being able to tell everyone that we see each day about the real reason for the Christmas season! It's the best feeling. Being able to remind people that He is the Reason and that without Him, we wouldn't have anything that we do. What a marvelous knowledge that is! I know that this Church is true. I know that we have the ability to overcome anything that the adversary tries to place in our lives, and any trials that we have to go through in this life. It was never a requirement to have to experience everything alone. When times are hard, we need to turn to Him who made it all possible, and know that through his Birth that we celebrate, His life that we remember, His atoning sacrifice that makes change possible, and His death and resurrection that give us hope for our futures, we will be able to overcome all things - because He overcame them first. 

Well, I love you all! Merry Christmas! Have a glorious week! :) 

-The Bush! :)

-The Nativity

-The cute kids that just loved us so much! This was their "Silly picture," they wanted to make our nametags. So cute! :) 

-- 

"God be with you 'till we meet again!"

Hurrah for Israel!

Much Love,

Sister Jennifer Griffith

Week 18: "He Already Goes to Our Church!"

December 14, 2015

Hello darling friends!! This email will likely be a little shorter than most because I don't have a ton of time to write (Thank goodness, right? I know these can get super long at times...), but we'll see how fast I can get these fingers to type!! 

So, this week was pretty spectacular, and uneventful as well, but hey, some weeks have to be a little dull so we can appreciate the really good ones, right? Oh yeah! :) 

So, on Monday night after P-day, we were going to visit Greg (the one who is putting off Heart Surgery) and Sister Schmidt pulls the car off of the road, parks, we say a prayer, are getting out of the car, and my foot sinks a good 4 or 5 inches into the mud... good thing I was wearing my white shoes, am I right!? Haha, so we move the car because I can't walk through that all, and, all of this mud flies onto the right side of the car and totally cakes the thing in a bucket-ton of mud. Driving around after it was dry was the worst. We got permission to get a car wash mid-week because it definitely wasn't something that we were comfortable with driving... haha, I'll attach a picture. It was a funny experience for sure.. 

We had a lesson with one of our investigators, Elena, this week. She has been out of town for the last month or so, but she's finally back now! It was such a neat experience, because we were teaching her the Restoration, about the Book of Mormon and about Joseph Smith and how the same Church that Christ Himself set up on the earth so long ago has been restored in these last days, and at the end she was kind of quiet and we asked her what she was feeling, and explaining to her what the Spirit feels like (Galatians 5:22-23).. "love, joy, peace, longsuffering, etc." and she was like, "I feel like reassured to keep meeting with you." It was SO COOL!!!!! I just love it when I get to witness people feeling the Spirit for the first time.. It is my favorite part of missionary work! :) 

We also went to visit a family in our ward to fill out a Family Mission Plan with them. We asked the youngest daughter, Maele (Miley), which one of her friends she could talk about the gospel with, and she was like, "Hmm.. Probably Noah." Then we asked her what she had already done with Noah, and she said, "Talked about Church," and then we were like, "Wow! That's awesome! What do you think you can do next with Noah? Do you think you could invite Him to Church?" .. and then she looked as us with a weird look on her face and exclaims, "He already goes to our Church!!!!! He's a member!" It was seriously the funniest thing.. and also super awkward. No wonder her family was all laughing when she said his name. Well, members need to be strengthened too! No doubt about it. Good stuff. :)

I also got to go on Exchanges this week with our Sister Training Leader, Sister Huang (she goes home on the 28th of this month, so she's pretty much a professional missionary). We had such an eventful day! We went tracting (knocking on doors and asking if people are interested in learning more about the church) and either no one was home or didn't want us to talk to them, and we were about to walk back to the car, but then we decided to knock one last door, and a 13 yr-old girl answers and tells us that her family might be interested in learning more, and that they don't really have a church that they go to all of the time. She was especially excited when we talked to her about Young Women's and all of the friends she could make there. It was so neat!! :) Her name is Tatiana. We are so excited to go back and talk with her and her family. People always say that the one who accepts the message is the last door you try, and that was so true! I am so grateful for the Spirit and for being able to try and spread God's love to all of His Children here in Spokane, no matter their circumstances. We also got to help one of our Potential Investigators put up her Christmas lights as a surprise for husband who is out of town. I've never put up lights before, so that was fun! :) 

After Exchanges, Sister Schmidt came home and said that she wasn't feeling well. She got some sort of stomach flu, and so we were pretty much in the house the rest of the week, so I got a lot of updating records and things to do, so that was a little bit boring, but it's okay!!! It needed to be done and she needed to feel better so that we can go out and spread the good word this week. :) But, we were able to leave for Specialized Training with the Zone and our Mission President and his Wife, and one of our zone leaders was saying that during the last 2 transfers (12 weeks), our zone has had at least 1 baptism every single week.. how cool is that!? 

Something really embarrassing that happened was that our district was asked to sing, and they decided that I should sing a solo for one of the verses of "Oh Come, Oh Come, Emmanuel." We had practiced a ton, I was nervous, and we get up there, sing everything right, and then on my solo, I totally start singing the wrong verse.. So, being super nervous, I stop singing, say sorry, and then continue singing the right verse, instead of starting over or just singing the verse I was singing until the end... it was SUPER awkward.. needless to say, I was super embarrassed about that and don't think I'll be singing too many solos from now on. I didn't mess up at all during any of the practices, but of course I had to mess up during the real thing.. So awesome........ Oh well! 

Anyway, so.. during the time that I was in the house while Sister Schmidt was sick, I got to read "His Grace is Sufficient" by Brad Wilcox. It is an amazing talk! You should totally all read it this week! I know that our Savior's grace makes up all of the difference and that we can go to Him with whatever we have and He will help us to be more than we could ever be on our own. Well, my time is up. I love you all! I love this mission, and I love my Savior. May we each remember Him more fully this Christmas season. 

Love you! Have a glorious week! :) 

-The nasty Car.. haha

-The Christmas lights we help put up! She wanted to stop them before they finished lining the roof, so that was strange. Oh well! :) 

-A hat I crocheted this week. So fun! :) 

-- 

"God be with you 'till we meet again!"

Hurrah for Israel!

Much Love,

Sister Jennifer Griffith

Week 17: To Have Heart Surgery, or To Not Have Heart Surgery, That is The Question

December 7, 2015

Well, hello there! Yet another week has passed... the time is just going faster and faster... it feels like it was just yesterday that I was sitting at this computer writing an email to all of you glorious people.. Crazy! :)

This week was just full of the Christmas spirit and every time anything Christmas related happens, it just makes me all giddy inside.. this truly is the most wonderful time of the year. I hope you all had a chance to watch the "A Savior is Born" video on christmas.mormon.org. There are a few other super cute videos for Christmas on mormonchannel.org too! One is called "The Christmas Spirit" and the other one is called "What Shall we Give?" They are both super good, so I would recommend searching those on mormonchannel.org and watching them this week. They're only like 3ish minutes each. :) 

Anyway, so this week there was a Tree-lighting Ceremony on the Airforce Base that we went and helped out with which was super fun. It was so funny though, when we were on the base, these Policemen pull up and start looking in someone's truck that was parked by the chapel, and the guy who owns the truck starts running over to the policemen and yells, "Those are nerf guns!" haha.. it was quite a quirky time. Why carry nerf guns in your truck, who knows. Super funny, though. Apparently someone had called it in. Poor guy. It made Sister Schmidt and I chuckle though. :)

It was also the ward Christmas party and First Presidency Christmas Devotional (if you didn't get a chance to watch that- go watch it on lds.org - it was amazing!) and it was decorated so cute by a sister in our ward who is basically an amazing Interior Designer.. people's variety of talents never cease to amaze me. We are each so blessed! :) The ward Christmas party was so wonderful and at the end they gave us basically all of the left overs - they take really good care of us missionaries.. such a blessing! :) The party was so well attended, though, that the 24 tables that they set out weren't enough.. they added like 3 more to those and people still kept coming. We had 3 investigators there too, which was super awesome! :) 

So, remember how I mentioned about Greg last week? The one that was like, "So how soon can I be baptized?" WELL... we met with him twice this week -once for a church tour and once for another lesson... plus he came to the ward Christmas party AND church yesterday.. But basically, this man is so intense and wanting to be baptized that he is putting off OPEN HEART SURGERY until after he is baptized because he wants to be baptized before in case he passes away or something... We tried to explain to him that Heavenly Father knows the intents of his heart and that he would be okay if he were to die, but he was like.. "yeah, I see what you're saying, and that's comforting.. but, I think I still want to be baptized first because recovery is really long. Plus, 2016 seems like a pretty good year to have heart surgery." Man, this guy just makes me laugh every time. What dedication, I'll tell ya. His faith is so heart warming, but also this whole situation is super nerve racking.. It's his agency, I suppose. But anyway, something neat that happened with him during the church tour this week was that we were in the chapel and we had them be silent for just a few moments and asked him how he felt afterward and he was like, "I feel peaceful. Like all my burdens are lifted when I'm in this room."  It was so incredible! The Spirit truly just emanates from the Chapel and it is such an amazing blessing to be able to have such sacred places to worship each Sabbath day. :)

Well, another super happy thing that happened this week was that Nicole (the one who got married on the 24th and baptized on Halloween) went to the temple the first time this week to do baptisms for the dead and I GOT TO GO!!! :) It was super happy! She was super nervous and her countenance didn't hide that, but right after she started actually doing the work, her face changed and she was just beaming and so happy afterward! It was such a tender mercy to be able to see that and how much the Spirit truly touches people's lives and helps them to feel at peace. He truly is the Comforter. 

Something funny that happened this week was that we were getting our mail at our apartment building and we waved to this girl outside, and she just walks over to our car and tries to get in it.. We were like... "Hi...." and then when she realized we weren't her ride, she was super embarrassed. Poor girl.... Also, this week on Tuesday was the FIRST DAY my entire mission that I haven't driven. Sister Schmidt knows the area well enough now that she started driving this week, and it has been so nice to just be a passenger for once! :) 

Also, remember my favorite game, "Stump the Missionary?" Well, a lot of people decided that it was needful to play that beautiful game this week, and it proved for quite the interesting lessons. One can ask "what about this!?" questions until their blue in the face, and we can answer them until we can't mutter another word, but what it really comes down to is if The Book of Mormon is true or not. If the Book of Mormon is true, then that means that Joseph Smith is a prophet and that everything that people say happened long ago really did, that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is truly the Lord's Kingdom once again established on the earth preparatory to the Second Coming of the Messiah (the title page of the Book of Mormon) and every other claim along with it. It's as simple as that. I just wish everyone knew it, too. I know that the Book of Mormon is truly Another Testament of Jesus Christ, that everything that happened in it is not just some made up story to sell copies (they're free, anyway), or some scheme of some sort, but that it was written long ago by servants of the Lord, that Jesus Christ Himself appeared to the people in the Ancient Americas and showed Himself to them and taught them His gospel, and that it was delivered to Joseph Smith in the 1800s to translate by the power of God from that ancient text into English so that we can all know how to get back to live with our Father in Heaven, Savior Jesus Christ, and family once more if we abide by its and the Bible's precepts. What a beautiful blessing it is to have The Book of Mormon, which truly testifies of the perfect man who is the Reason for the Season. All are invited to read it. 

Well, friends. It truly was a wonderful week, and I am again so grateful for all of you and your love and support. God hears our prayers. He loves and cares for you by name, and is a perfect Father. Pray to Him and pour out your heart to Him, and you will be able to find greater peace than by any other means. 

Have a wonderful, Christ-filled, week, my friends. Love you all! :) 

-At the Temple with Nicole (Sister Finau got to come too! :))

-At the Ward Christmas party

-One of our member's birds - she loves Salt and Vinegar Potato Chips, haha. :) 

-- 

"God be with you 'till we meet again!"

Hurrah for Israel!

Much Love,

Sister Jennifer Griffith

Week 16: A Savior is Born

November 30, 2015

HELLO WONDERFUL DARLING FRIENDS AND FAMILY!!!!

This. Week. Was. WONDERFUL! :) Okay, I'll stop with the caps-lock freak out now, just know that I am super excited to tell you about this week! :) 

So, it snowed a little bit this week, and I got to drive all in it on the way to Zone Conference on Tuesday because I'm still the designated driver even though I finally have a companion with a license, woot woot! :) haha, so.... I'm super glad that I drove in the winters in Colorado during High School, because I was prepared and that was happy!

Another happy thing that happened this week was Thanksgiving!! It was hard not being with family and everything, but we had a super sweet family with their 5 little kiddies that we went and had dinner with. It was super yummy and the whole day (since we couldn't proselyte) was filled with writing thank-you notes for people, delivering them, and going to dinner at this wonderful family's home, so that was pretty great. It's super funny the number of places we go that people are like, "why are you out in this weather? Aren't you cold!?" It's really nice though, because then people take pity on us and let us come inside for a change. OH YEAH! :) Anyway, but yeah. So, Thanksgiving was wonderful and I taught the member the whole having a "sampler plate" for pie.. she was amazed! Oh, the joys of the sampler plate.. getting to try a little bit of everything that only adds up to one piece of pie.. it's the best. :) The cutest thing, though, was when their boy, Aaron, said the prayer after we shared a message with them.. he was praying and saying how grateful he was for everything and then he was like, "and please bless all the people, that they will be happy at the 2nd coming." Such a tender and sweet prayer. Children are truly such a magnificent example of Christlike love. 

I am so grateful for this wonderful life that I have to live, for the glorious people that I get to associate with, and for all of the things I've been able to learn so far here in Spokane. I am so grateful for each and every one of you, and most of all, I am grateful for my Savior Jesus Christ and how he truly was born to this earth to bless the lives of so many and to save us all because there was no way for us to save ourselves. I am so grateful for His selfless life and perfect example, the hope that He gives each of us, and for our Heavenly Father for giving us the Divine gift of His matchless Son. I was so intrigued this week with the word Christmas. "Mas" in Spanish means more.. So, folks, the word Christmas literally means more of Christ.. HOW COOL IS THAT!? Not sure why I haven't really actively noticed that throughout the last 19 years, but hey, better late than never, right? Strive to make this beautiful Christmas season more full of Christ.. He truly is the reason for the season! :) In hopes to help us all do this, the Church has come out with a new video and message on how "A Savior is Born!" Watch this video.. it is seriously the best! It's all kids testifying of Jesus Christ. Watch it. Share it with everyone. Help them to feel the unique spirit of this special time of year. It's on christmas.mormon.org. SO happy! :) 

This week we also met with Stephanie again and taught her The Gospel of Jesus Christ (Faith, Repentance, Baptism, Receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost, and Enduring to the End). When we were teaching her about baptism by immersion by the proper Priesthood authority, a light came in her eyes and she said that baptism is definitely something she can see in her future and that it would be really amazing to have the Holy Ghost as her constant companion. Such a sweet experience. 

Another thing that was awesome that happened this week (are you sensing a theme yet? This is literally my life.. I'm so blessed! :)) was that our cute little 10-yr-old Investigator Dalaina got baptized!! It was such a beautiful experience. It was so cute too, because on Sunday when she was confirmed a member of the Church and was given the Gift of the Holy Ghost, she was telling us, "at first I was scared and nervous, but then I just felt happy and peaceful." That was such a testament to me of how the Holy Ghost truly is our Comforter and that He brings us every good and happy feeling and casts out the bad. So neat. :)

The last SUPER happy thing I want to talk about this week is Greg!! Greg is our Investigator that we haven't been able to meet with for a couple of weeks, but we felt prompted to stop by yesterday and see him, and we literally sat down, and hadn't really started saying anything, and he was just like (I kid you not), "So.. how soon can I be baptized??" HOLY GUACAMOLE!!! If I wasn't already sitting down, I probably would have fallen over I was so elated and shocked. So, anyway.. the rest of our lesson was teaching him the Gospel of Jesus Christ and talking about everything he needs to do to prepare for his baptism (like giving up Coffee and Alcohol and stuff) and he totally just accepted all of it. He was like, "Done. Not a problem. But, TEA? I can't drink TEA?"... then he thought about it for a second and was like, "Eh, It's okay.. I don't like tea anyway." It was so awesome! SO, long story short, he is on-date to be baptized on January 9th! How awesome is that!? The Lord truly is preparing people all around us to hear the message of His restored Gospel, and I am so grateful that I have been able to experience even a small amount of the joy He must feel as people choose to accept Him in their lives. :)

Well, that's about all I have for this week. I know that this Church is True. I know that learning about the teachings of Jesus Christ as taught in the Book of Mormon and The Bible will bring each of us the greatest happiness we could ever imagine. This is eternal happiness, not worldly happiness. I know that the Book of Mormon is the word of God. I have grown closer to Him through living and "abiding by its precepts than by any other book" and I know that it would bless all mankind, if they would just take the time to read it. This is such a glorious life. Keep sight of the eternities, my friends. That's what it's all about. 

Love you all! Have the best week and stay warm! :)

-Sister Schmidt and I with Dalaina and a Brother in our ward at her baptism! So cute!!

-At the Dr's office this week.. He's LDS, so the Ensign was out in the waiting room.. made us chuckle. :) (I've had a sinus infection for the last 3 weeks that hasn't gone away, so I finally went and got some medicine. I'm starting to feel better now though, no worries. All is well!) :)

-Sister Schmidt and I with some happy snowmen that someone made at our apartment complex. So happy!

-- 

"God be with you 'till we meet again!"

Hurrah for Israel!

Much Love,

Sister Jennifer Griffith

Week 15: A State of Emergency

November 23, 2015

Well, first and foremost, darling friends and family.. HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!! :) I want you to each know how eternally grateful I am to have you all in my life and to have been able to continually learn and grow from your sweet examples and Christ-like love. I truly have been blessed for having known you.

So, I officially finished training (a 12 week workbook that our trainers teach to help us become better missionaries) last week, so it feels super weird to have one less hour of studies each day.. I will forever be training though, in my heart if not in that booklet.. :) So, my new companion is Sister Schmidt! She is super cool and is from Loomis, California. She has been out only 6 weeks longer than I have (one transfer), so we are still super shocked that we're companions.. Normally two missionaries who have been out as short of a time as we have are not companions, but hey, we have fun and we preach the gospel, so there's no complaints here! :) My new District is super cool too! One of my favorite Sisters from the MTC is in the district with all of us, so this will be a fun transfer for sure. Our District leader is a funny Elder too, so we're all pretty excited to learn and serve with/from one another. 

On Tuesday, we had a super interesting day.. I'm sure that you all probably heard about it in one way or another, but what it boils down to is that Washington was placed in a State of Emergency this past week.. super crazy experience. So, Tuesday morning started like any other transfer day. Sister Blauer's companion was leaving too, and so all four of us left early in the morning to go take our companions to the stake center where they met their new companions. It was super bittersweet to say goodbye to Sister Finau, but her work here was done, and Sister Schmidt was called here for a reason, so it's all okay. :) Then, Sister Blauer and I studied together, and then left to go to a different Stake Center in Spokane (right next door to the Temple, so pretty!) to pick up Sister Lott and Sister Schmidt, our new companions. So, on the way there, Sister Blauer was telling me how they had forecasted 40-60 mph winds later in the day.. so, once our new companions were there, we were about to leave to drive back to our area when the winds were getting SUPER bad.. like, we probably could have done a little Mary Poppins flying action if we had an umbrella or two. So, we get this text from the Assistants to the President saying that it is unsafe to drive and to stay in for the rest of the night.. well, obviously we weren't going to stay the night at the Stake Center, so the Elders drove to Walmart and bought some tiedowns for the back of the truck so the luggage could be in there safely while us Sisters stayed and helped the ward in the building set up for Young Women's Evening in Excellence that was supposed to happen on Tuesday night.. so, to make a long story a little bit longer, we ended up staying at the Stake Center for 2 and half hours while we got everything ready to head back in the middle of this crazy storm. It was super neat, though, because in the midst of these treacherous winds, power was going out everywhere and the church house would go out for a second, and us missionaries would start singing, and it came right back.. it was a really cool experience. That, and the Temple was perfectly lit the entire time. Heavenly Father truly is the ruler of all, and His house stayed bright in the midst of a world of darkness. Such a tender mercy.

Anyway, so eventually we got home at night only to find out that our power was off, so we bundled up, stayed warm, and didn't open our fridge. Cookies and Goldfish for dinner is good for the soul. ;) So, driving around the next couple of days, there were trees down everywhere, houses damaged and ruined, people freezing and without food, and it was just all a very humbling and growing experience. We were without power for a couple of days, so our sweet Relief Society president let us stay with her, so that was a tender mercy as well. Never once during all of this, though, was I ever scared. It was such a testimony builder to me that a loving Heavenly Father directs this work and will protect His people as they continually follow Him. I know that we were kept safe from harm throughout this whole storm, and I am just so grateful. Everything works according tot the timing of the Lord, and we can find continued comfort that there is light (sometimes literally, even) at the end of the tunnel, if we but endure to the end!

On Friday, we finally got to go back home, and we went shopping that day because all of our food had spoiled throughout the course of the storm and plus Sister Schmidt didn't have anything because she just gotten here. :) On Friday afternoon, we finally went out teaching for a full day (with the storm, we had a lot of other things we had to do this week), and we went to a less-active, Kayla's, house and one of her roommates who is deaf was talking to us on the doorstep.. now this is where a super cool miracle comes in.. So, both Sister Schmidt and I just so conveniently studied American Sign Language in High School!! So, we were signing to him and asking him if he would want to learn more about the gospel and he wasn't interested right now, but his wife is deaf and so is our less-active's boyfriend!! So, we were talking to our mission President about this, and he actually said that Sister Schmidt and I have permission to study ASL 3-4 nights a week to learn how to sign the discussions to them so we can teach this household!! HOW COOL IS THAT!? I finally get to use that Sign Language!! So exciting! I'm super nervous though, because I haven't signed a lot since High School, but hopefully it will come back and we'll be able to help these beautiful children of God come closer to Him and His Son. I'll keep you posted on that! :) 

We also saw Stephanie this week again (the one who cried during her prayer and asked Heavenly Father to let us come teach her again) and she is moving to Montana soon, but wants missionaries to keep teaching her there. How cool is that!? We taught her the Plan of Salvation, and she agreed to come to church this week. So AWESOME! :) 

Anyway, sorry this email has been so long, but this whole missionary life truly is such an amazing blessing. I know that my Heavenly Father lives. That He stands ready at any time of the night or the day to our prayers, and that He wants to bless us. I know that the Book of Mormon is the word of God and that it truly is another testament of Jesus Christ. Does Christ love everyone? Do you think that He would visit more than just the people in the Middle East as documented in the Bible? ..and if He did indeed visit those people, do you think that He would want them to write that down and make a record of what He taught them?  I testify that this truly is the case. Christ loves all people. He visited the people of the ancient Americas and taught them His gospel and let them feel the nail prints in His had and the wound in His side. Those people recorded that experience - in a Book called The Book of Mormon. Read it, and you will feel an even greater Divine love for Jesus Christ and a greater light come into your life. Of this I promise. 

Well, I hope that you each have a beautiful Thanksgiving and start to the holiday season. This truly is the most wonderful time of the year. Love you all! Stay strong and make this week better than last week! :) 

-Just one example of the storm calamities. 

-With the McCune family that we stayed with during the storm.. they are the BEST!

-At Dalaina's house.. our 10 yr-old investigator who is getting baptized this Saturday! :) We "heart-attacked" her. :) 
-- 

"God be with you 'till we meet again!"

Hurrah for Israel!

Much Love,

Sister Jennifer Griffith

Week 14: To Give them a Chance

November 16, 2015

So, the verdict is... I'm getting a new companion again.... and I'm STAYING IN SUNSET WARD!! So, at the end of this transfer I will have been here in one area for 4 and a half months.. oh yeah! :) 

I'm really excited that I get to stay through the holiday season.. I really love these people here and have already learned so much and can't wait for what else the Lord has in store for me here in this part of His Vineyard. I am going to miss Sister Finau a ton, but my new companion seems really nice too! Her name is Sister Schmidt, and that's pretty much all I know right now, but I'm sure I love her too and I'll tell you more next week! :)

So, this week we had District meeting as a last time as this District before transfers, so we had to naturally take some photos together. I have attached the funniest one - our awkward family photo.. don't worry, I wasn't actually sad, :). Anyway, but I am seriously so grateful for the blessing of being able to be a missionary. I have already learned so much in the last 3 months, and I can't wait to see how much more I will learn throughout the next 15. The biggest thing I've learned probably is that, this world is crazy and is becoming increasingly more wicked and a lot of times it is easy for us to lose the hope that we so desperately need in order to continue on with our heads held high. However, our greatest source of hope can and should be our Savior Jesus Christ and His infinite and perfect Atonement that was performed on behalf of all mankind. He has experienced it all before any of us ever have, and because of that, He alone knows how to bless and to help us in times where it seems like no one can. Turn to Him. Learn of Him. Strive to live how He lived, and everything will be taken care of according to our Father's will. What a beautiful blessing that knowledge is. 

This week, I got to go on exchanges again and went to the same area as last time, except this week we walked everywhere instead of biking and I was on exchanges with Sister Kruitbosch who was our Sister Training Leader last transfer. She is such an amazing example to me and I seriously learned so much from her on exchanges. We went and helped one of their members clean her house in the morning, and that felt really good, and then in the afternoon 2 of their investigators dropped them (which means that they have for one reason or another, decided to stop meeting with the missionaries... it is the worst ever because they just don't know what they're saying no to!! :( ).. so that wasn't fun.. but then we went and taught some lessons to other people in their ward and it was such a powerful day! We were able to just teach simply (1 sentence for each point) and the spirit was so strong.. I love moments like that on a mission! :) 

We have a new investigator named Phyllis who is awesome and is from Germany. She just lost her husband a few years ago, and has been so prepared. LOVE HER! :) 

We were able to implement a lot of the things I learned on exchanges back into our area, so that has been such a blessing. We were able to go by and see this family who is inactive and the husband is a nonmember, and the spirit was so strong as we testified to them of the Comforter and His role in testifying of the Savior and our Heavenly Father. 

We also got to meet with the Howard family again - a new family that we have started teaching (the one who already has the Book of Mormon and talks about the Plan of Salvation) and the spirit was so strong there as we communed one with another. 

So, as you can probably tell, the work here is wonderful. We are trying to have the "Faith to Find" those whom the Lord has prepared in this area, and to really be intentional with our missions. It has been such a blessing to me to be able to reflect on just why I am here and how much this really is my Savior's mission, not mine. 

One really amazing thing that happened this week was that we were teaching Nicole one of her new member lessons on the Plan of Salvation and we were talking about temple work and being able to do work for those whom we want to spend eternity with (our family, loved ones, etc) and Mike (her husband) was like, I think that a statement that might be a little bit true is that we do temple work for people that we want to give a chance to. Think about that statement for a second.. How cool is that!? When we go to the temple, we often do work for those who have passed on who we don't really know a lot about. They could have been the vilest of people, but they are given a chance at eternity and a choice to change and to accept the message of the true and everlasting Gospel of Jesus Christ. We don't know anything about them, but we do their work so that they can be given a chance. That was such a powerful statement and I am so grateful for inspired members who bare their testimonies and help this work to move forward. This truly is eternal work, and I am so grateful to be a part of it. Remember to give others a chance this week, and know that you are loved! 

-Pretty Spokane. :)

-Sister Finau and I in front of the "Welcome to the Inland Northwest" sign by the airport

-Awkward Family Photo (our District is pretty much the greatest, haha)

-- 

"God be with you 'till we meet again!"

Hurrah for Israel!

Much Love,

Sister Jennifer Griffith