Monday, March 31, 2014

03. 31. 2014

This week I have felt the feeling of pure joy! 

Sister Fullmer and I are truly being led by the Lord and it is so wonderful. Thursday was the most amazing day of my mission so far and will probably be the only day I will have time to tell you about this week. 

So we have been working very hard and the Lord is showing us He trusts us because on Thursday we had 3 teaching appointments scheduled! Most weeks we are lucky if we have that many for the whole week! So our first teaching appointment was with Michelle.

Michelle has a pretty cool story of how we came to teach her. She is single and 43 and moved here a few months ago to be near her dad after her mom had passed away. On one Sunday she just showed up to another ward at a different church building wanting to know more about the church. So the missionaries found out she was in our area and called us up. We then contacted her and she was excited to set up an appointment with us and eager to learn. Since when does that happen??? Never. Not in the Woodlands anyway. We went with a member from the ward Sister Moore and taught her about The Restoration. The spirit was with us and I know Michelle could feel it. She was eager to learn more. She even said a kneeling prayer with us at the end of the lesson which is a HUGE deal for investigators. She came to sacrament meeting this week and later today we will set up another appointment to go and teach her more. Michelle is the perfect example of the Lord preparing a way for His children to know His plan for them. 

Right after Michelle we went to our lesson with a young mom named Marlis. We found Marlis tracting one evening (which I think I might have mentioned in my last email) She was more then happy to have us come back and teach her. We then taught Marlis The Restoration and it was one of the most powerful teaching experiences of my life. I was able to recite Joseph Smith's first vision. The spirit is always strong when you are able to look into the investigators eyes and tell them in Joseph's own words the first vision. This time was no exception. I then can't even describe to you what happened next, the spirit literally opened my mouth and gave me words as I bore testimony of the reality that Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ appeared to Joseph Smith and called him a prophet of God. It was my voice but they were not my words. I know this because I learned from them, my testimony was strengthened by them. It was an amazing experience. I know Marlis felt the power of the Holy Ghost as well. Sadly, Marlis was honest with us when she said that now isn't the time for her to learn more. She did say she would read the Book of Mormon though and thanked us for coming. Even though that lesson may not have seemed like "a success" it was in so many ways. 

We then went to our lesson with Chon Gonzales and Rui over at Bishop and Sister Fife's home. Once again we taught the lesson of The Restoration (which is literally my favorite one) This time Sister Fullmer and I know that that the spirit gave us the words to say because we were just emotionally and spiritually drained at this point but the spirit was SO strong. I honestly can't recall anything I said but I knew how I felt and all of the sudden the spirit burned deep in my heart and I knew that I needed to invite her to be baptized and so I followed the spirit. Before I could even finish the sentence Chon was nodding her head almost as if she knew before what I was even going to ask her. Chon is getting baptized!!! May 3rd is the date we set with her. I can't even begin to describe the feelings of the spirit in that room. The feelings just came out in tears as I hugged her. Sister Fullmer and I got into our car after the lesson and it took everything in us not to scream. We cried all the way home though. 

I now know how Alma felt when we exclaimed how great is my joy! It is pure joy that you feel when you are able to be apart of an experience like that. It is pure joy when you are trusted by the Lord to be even a small part in helping someone come unto him. My joy was full and I truly was only a small part in Chon's conversion but I am honored to have even been apart of it at all!!

Chon Gonzales will be the first baptism of the sister missionaries in the Woodlands ever. 

The Lord has prepared a specific plan for us all and as we trust in him He guides us down that path. It turns out that The Woodlands area is relatively new to having Sister Missionaries. If I would have came out on my mission a year ago, I wouldn't have been able to even serve in The Woodlands because it wouldn't have even existed. 

What a great and marvelous work it truly is.

Sister Niedert 




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