Temple Pday and Itsy Bitsy Miracles!

A member fed us dinner at the church while they participated in a lesson with the elders at the same time.. Best Chicken Noodle soup for all the rain and our colds. 

Hello everyone! 

What a WEEK! Let me get down to business!

Monday sadly we dropped Paula, and then we went off to visit a member in the nurse and rehab center. Sister Arnold was married and raised her family in Wenatchee (I got to ask her all about where she lived and I got to connect with her a bit).  Afterwards we were on our way to go knocking, we had stopped in the car behind a truck that was about to turn left, when the car behind us hit us... Oh snap! I was about to stress out until I pulled over and I got out and looked at the car and there wasn't a single scratch...  The person had just bumped us, and they were even members from the Sunnyside ward, down the highway 30 minutes.

 Mis hermanos y hermanas, Les amo!

Tuesday we went to the temple! Holy cow, I missed this beautiful place... Sitting in the Celestial room again brought so much comfort and peace. I was surprised that it came in a way that wasn't very strong or significant. I just felt, p e a c e . . . and that's all I needed, and I'm so glad Heavenly Father knew that!  Later that day we found Marissa, who we had a lesson with the next day about the restoration. While teaching her she expressed her feelings about how close she has come to Heavenly Father through prayer. She was a drug addict since she was a YOUNG teenager.  After years of guilt and shame, she searched diligently for help, and she has been clean for 6 years!  She has a solid testimony of prayer and Heavenly Father's divine help.

Wednesday we had that lesson with her, and we also stopped by a potential Hermana Taua and I met before transfers. Guillermina has the great responsibility of taking care of her grand kids after working in the harvest all morning. She has told us she wants to be baptized, but she wants to come to church before she makes the decision of when.  Well, perfect Guillermina, because you have to go to church to progress, and in order to be baptized, you have to progress... It just all fit in! Then later that day we helped the Young Women make cookies for the great big Harvest Dinner for the following Friday. 

Thursday was full of fallen-through appointments, no service to be done at the food bank, and not too much happened...  We did get some good knocking in and visited by some other potentials and members, and shared some short messages of encouragement and of strength. 

Friday we finished planning and went to the Ward Harvest Dinner, and it was a great turn out!  Burt came, Joann came, Joann even brought a friend who we were introduced to, and we even had a short lesson with him before the dinner about what we do as missionaries. He knows the Bible in and out!  He wants to read Daniel this upcoming week, and wants the missionaries to read it with him... Haha, of course!  Why not?  We passed him to the elders at the dinner since he lives in their area, and they hit it off pretty well!  They have an appointment with him on Saturday, and he lives over 30 miles away, almost to the edge of the elder's area... Haha, good thing that they have a member taking them!  A whole bunch of our less actives even showed up!  It was so awesome!

Yakima Valley Spanish Zone

Saturday we went to Yakima for a Zone Training Meeting about inspired questions and discerning the needs of our investigators and less actives. We later went to another baptism of the Elders' investigator Masae, who's originally from Samoa.  With permission, Sister Taua came down to Toppenish with a member to the baptism, and it all ended up going well!  We were planning on seeing Molly, but she made different plans with her Dad, but she's been doing so well anyway! Then, we had a lesson with Burt that night, which went so well!  We reviewed the Restoration and the Gospel and invited him to be baptized!  He said yes!  I was personally prompted to ask him for November 21st, when we had planned to ask him for November 28th. It turned our that Burt was very close to his Dad growing up, who sounds like may have passed away some time ago, and his birthday was November 22nd, which will be Burt's confirmation date!  We've truly been able to work well with him and help him see the plan that Heavenly Father has for him. He agreed to November 21st! 

Sunday, Burt, Joann, and Joann's friend were all at church! Then later that day we had a lesson with Molly, and invited her to highlight Christ's name in yellow or underline it every time she reads it in her scriptures. She's growing so much! We've made plans to have her confirmation the same day as her baptism, and her Dad (Brother Ibarra) is going to baptize her. She's become so wonderful!

I guess I might as well mention that I'm hitting my halfway mark this Tuesday.... *Runs and hides under bed crying*   NO! It's flown by sooooooo incredibly fast!  I can't face it right now... Nope, can't do it... And Hermana Parry hits her 2 months tomorrow... its an unbelievable week for both of us. It's so weird....  I can say I have truly enjoyed the journey of these 9 past, crazy, happy, sad, disappointing months. It's help me grow so much even when I have become frustrated and wanted to give up, I've always had Christ to lean on, and my Heavenly Father to talk to.  It's brought so much comfort to me with in this past roller-coaster time. There's no where to look but up from here. If I didn't change many hearts within this past year, I know mine was changed for the better. I have come to know my Savior better than I ever have since I have been sent to this earth. I can't wait to see what's in store for my next 9 months.   I am in no way, shape, or form a perfect missionary, but I have become perfected in Christ, and I am still becoming perfect in Christ. I love my mission.  I wouldn't trade it for anything else in the world.  It's time to live up and take advantage of every moment I have, because I've got these few months left, and I can't let any moment pass by without coming closer to Christ with my companion or with my investigators. I continue to love my sweet trainee, she is a hard worker, and I don't doubt she will train after I leave, whenever that is, but that's not my point. :)

Have a wonderful week everyone! Love you all!

Elder johnson and I saw eachother at The temple! He's the only spanish elder Hermana Harston and I came in together with from the CCM, he even gave me a few blessings before we left the CCM. He's doing well and has now become a Zone Leader already! He says Hi to my email list, including Elder Asher Chia, Hermana Hooker and Hermana James!

Received a cute little gift from a member while we were out knocking doors, knocked into her and she gave a little prayer box for both of us!