Stop, Drop, and Pray!

Friends and family, hello from New Bloomfield, Pennsylvania! This week has been... a week haha. No doubt about that. You can't expect in the mission field to always have good weeks. There is a saying in the mission field that says that "in the field there are not bad days and bad weeks, just hard days and hard weeks, and there can be happiness found in every day". I have been trying to keep that in mind this week haha. Tuesday we went to Newport and it was an interesting experience. Last week we inherited 4 new investigators in Newport alone, and Tuesday we dropped down to 2 haha. Onward and upward right? We went to dinner at the Gallucci family's home and I always love that. Sister Gallucci gave us one of my first real pennsylvania-Dutch delicacies... Beet eggs! Basically what they are is an egg that is pickled in beets, vinagar, and a little bit of herbs and sugar. The egg is totally purple and it looks very questionable when you first see it. But, of course I was down to try and they were so good! I was surprised how much I liked them. Rant over haha. Thursday was a crazy day. We went to visit Christy, who is on date for baptism, and needless to say she probably won't be by the end of this week. Hopefully the Lord chastises me and proves me wrong, but as of now it's not looking good. We gave a really good lesson and tried to help her as much as we could, but unfortunately you can't force someone to take the help. Some people just refuse to change. But, that was definitely the first time I've taught a lesson where the investigator smoked the entire time haha. We also visited a less active, Sister Lyons, who is progressing very well. She loves to read from the prophets and loves the gospel library app. I taught her how to use it and the resources more effectively and she loved it. She has three daughters, two of the age of baptism, so hopefully we can open some doors and get their family back to church. We also met with Sister Pham, who is a small Vietnamese lady. She's so funny, haha. Her accent is really heavy but she's just about the most giving lady you'll ever meet. She gave us three boxes of crackers and a giant papaya to take home. She's awesome! That night we went and taught my favorite person in the world, Linda Stoke! Linda is a less active we have been working with since before I got here. When they first met her she was drinking 15 beers a night, smoking like a chimney, drank loads of coffee, and loved the occasional joint. She had no real desire to read the scriptures or go to church. Since then, she has gone absolutely cold turkey on any alcohol with no relapses, is cutting back her smoking and doesn't do any more joints, and is almost completely weaned off of coffee. She has been loyal to reading her scriptures everyday and always has questions for us to answer. It is just so awesome to watch her progress and watch her countenance change. She has totally done a complete 180 as she has found true joy in the gospel. Everyday when she makes coffee she puts on tablespoon less and by the end of the week she will be down to just hit water, so we are having a hot chocolate party haha! Saturday night and Sunday morning we had Stake Conference. It was probably the best stake conference I have ever been to. I received so many answers to prayers and insight on things I was struggling with. Our Stake president, President Giles, is just a powerhouse of spiritual insight. He is so blunt and in your face about things and I think that's why I love him so much. He is battling two different liver diseases, and probably doesn't have a whole lot of time left on this earth, but he's incredible. President and Sister Johnson, my mission president couple, were there and I just love them so much. They gave fabulous talks and are just the most kind and caring people you will ever meet. We had interviews with them this week to and it is so nice to have a one on one with President Johnson to talk about the trials I am going through. Unfortunately, their years of missionary service in the PPM will conclude in July. I'm pretty darn sad about that, but I know the next president is called of God. Today I feel very prompted by the spirit to share my simple testimony with you who read these letters. I know that this church, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, is the only church on this earth with the whole truth of God. I know that in 1820, God and Jesus Christ themselves appeared to a young boy named Joseph Smith who just wanted to know which church was true. Through him, they restored Jesus Christ's True Church and God's power on the earth for today. Because of this we have the Book of Mormon, another testament of Jesus Christ, with more truths in it about how to make it back to heaven than any other book of this earth. It has stories and morals that can help us lead better lives and find greater peace and joy. I know that families can be together forever through what we call the Plan of Salvation. I know my Savior, Jesus Christ lives. I know that he died for our sins, pains, and trials, so that we could be forgiven of the mistakes we all inevitably make. I know he was resurrected, and we will be too. I know he loves me more than I can comprehend, and I hope to show even a portion of that love to others. I know that there is no other way on earth to recieve everlasting joy and peace than through living the true, simple principle this church teaches. I know all of these things are true, without a doubt in my mind. If you don't, I challenge you to pray about them. I know and I promise you that God answers prayers, and wants us to know for ourselves. I love being a missionary. This week I forgot why I loved being a missionary and why I was even here. But I remember now. I pray I never forget again. I am honored to where Christ's name on my chest everyday and to be a representative of his one, true church. I love you all and thank you for all of your prayers. God be with you!