Miracles

Hello!

I am just sitting here listening to Anne singing "The Miracle" and it is so absolutely beautiful! I am still waiting for her to put out a CD. The words are so true, and it is such a strong testimony of our Savior Jesus Christ. I love Him, and know that through His atonement we can see "miracles" every day.

i am SO jealous that you got to have dinner with Emma Lancaster! ah! i miss that girl and can't wait to see her! Tell her a big hello from me! love her.

Speaking of miracles, this week was absolutely miraculous. I LOVE missionary work, ah. it is so much fun! I am so grateful for the chance i have to share the "good news" with everyone.. it really is the happiest "news" ever!

List of Miracles:

1. John. Oh John. haha i cannot wait for you all to meet him one day. He is so awesome. We had a great lesson this week at the Trail Center, and he is officially getting baptized on June 14!!! He is SO excited to get baptized... So excited, in fact, that he bore his testimony in sacrament meeting yesterday and invited the whole congregation to come to his baptism! ha i couldnt help the tears from coming, it was one of the happiest moments of my mission. He is going to be such a faithful, strong member. He bore a strong testimony that he has been prepared his whole life for this, and that he knows the Lord has big things in store for him. He is 60 years old (and believes that he will live till he is 120) so he also bore his testimony that the NEXT 60 years of his life he will be completely devoted to God, and His church. It was so powerful..... What was even cooler though, was after he bore his testimony, and boy in the ward who just graduated high school who is preparing to serve a mission, bore his testimony about the Holy Ghost, and spoke directly to John, bearing testimony that the Holy Ghost was there and that it was the reason John has felt the desire to come to Christ. It was so amazing to see this young boy bearing testimony and solidifying the experiences that John has had. I will never forget it.

2. Rochelle. Since May 7 she has had 3 heart attacks, and her health has slowly declined. It has been heart breaking (pun not intended ha) to see her in such a low, and weary state. BUT, she is honestly the most faithful woman i have ever met. She has complete trust in the Lord and total faith that she is just accomplishing the "plan" that God has set for her. We visited her this week, and her daughter Tamera, and got ice cream with them and had a wonderful visit. When we saw her earlier in the week, Rochelle was still so weak, so when she walked into Relief Society on Sunday both Sister Brough and i were totally shocked. She even bore her testimony in Sacrament meeting - the purest testimony i have ever heard. 

She talked about how she was able to get up, get ready, and drive all the way to church today - knowing that God gave her the strength to do so. She said that even amidst all that she has been going through, she still has "every reason to rejoice" because God has given her breath for one more day... and she didnt want to waste that breath by not bearing her testimony. The spirit was so powerful, and i wept hearing of her faith. I want faith like her. When John got up to bear his testimony after Rochelle, i thought I was going to be the one with a heart attack! and when John announced over the pulpit that he was getting baptized, Rochelle said "Hallelujah" and started clapping! haha it was awesome. I love her, and i love our ward.

3. Jay. We got a call at the Trail Center earlier this week and it was a man named Jay, who wanted to know more about the church and have some of his questions answered. I was the one who answered the phone, so i was grateful for the opportunity to teach him! He is orthodox jewish, and is currently reading the Book of Mormon. He has already read 3 Nephi, Alma, and has just started from the beginning. He is awesome. He did, however, have a ton of tough questions about who "God" is and who we worship... "God" or "Jesus Christ". He was able to ask questions that totally went over my head, and kind of trapped me into questioning even my faith and who we believe to be our God! We agreed to have him call back the next day, so i could study a little more and have a more solid answer for him. As i was praying that night and the next morning, along with studying the scriptures, i had one of the coolest experiences. I think i finally realized who i was praying to! We literally have the ability to talk to our Heavenly Father.. our father who created us, who loves us, who sent us here to earth, and who has a body of flesh and bone. He sent His son, Jesus Christ, our brother, to fulfill His plan.. and Christ came to give all honor and glory to His God. While praying i found myself saying "Heavenly Father, i know you know who You are! Help me to know who You are, so that Jay can know who you are!" I was then filled with so much light and love, and i know that the God we believe in is the true and living God. I know that Joseph Smith really did see two beings - God and Jesus Christ. The spirit led me to many scriptures that teach of these things, and i was able to have a great conversation with Jay the next day. It was such a learning experience for me, and my heart is so full of gratitude for the knowledge we have as members of the church. I know that God lives and is aware of us. Oh how i love Him!

4. We were able to find 7 new investigators this week, which was totally awesome. I  know that the Lord is in charge of this work, and that He will lead us to those who are prepared if we just have faith in Him!

5. We were able to find a lost sheep this week, named Alice. We had felt prompted to go and try this woman named Ruby, and had no real reason why. Her name had been mentioned by one of our investigators, who thought that Ruby was a member of the church. We had tried her with no luck, and so decided to try her again on wednesday. It was SO awesome because ALICE answered the door, not having any idea who Ruby was, but Alice was a member of the church who hasnt gone in over 10 years! She has a darling family, and when we were leaving her little kids kept asking their mom when they could get baptized. I know that the Lord led us to her.. there is no other explanation to finding her, besides the spirit guiding and directing us. Pray for her!

I could keep going for probably another hour.. but my time is up! the joy of missionary work is so great! I have been studying in the first few chapters of Mosiah, and man alive are they so good. I never want to stop reading them! But i love the Book of Mormon so much, and am so grateful to have such an uplifting, beautiful record to light my life.

love you all! 

Sister Peterson