Megan's a senior.
Nathan's a teacher.
Rachel's a missionary.
And my parents are awesome.
Life is pretty great.
This was an incredible week. Lots of
miracles. I've never been so tired, and we worked harder than I ever have
before on my mission, and it was amazing! I can't wait to be this tired next
week, too :)
First off, I want to wish a very
happy day-late Father's day to all the amazing Priesthood holders in my life! I
am so grateful for your examples and for your willingness to always do the
Lord's will. Especially my dad, who is basically the best dad in the entire
world. I love you all so much!!
Now for this week's instant replay:
Tuesday was our temple day at
the Bountiful Temple!!! It was so fun to drive through my old area to get up
there :) I love the temple. I love being reminded of the covenants, or
promises, we make with our Heavenly Father when we go there. I love the peace,
love, and joy that we can feel when we attend the temple. I know that we can be
together as families for eternity. I know our Heavenly Father loves us! I know
the Atonement of Jesus Christ is real. I know that we can be healed,
strengthened, and uplifted as we turn to Him and rely on His grace.
Wednesday, Sister Bill and I headed
back up to Bountiful for a special meeting with Brother
Donaldson of the Church missionary department. We discussed the importance of
the short, simple lessons using the pamphlets and other resources, but we
really focused on the principle of planning. Everything we do outside of
teaching should be planning. Scheduling is simply a function of planning -
there is so much more involved in the planning process. We need to constantly
be focused on our area and the people we serve. There is no better work for us
to be involved in than that of sharing the gospel with our fellow brothers and
sisters. And we can only accomplish the Lord's will for these people by taking
the time and energy to plan for them. To know what they need, to seek
revelation, to decide what to share, to know how members can help, to know
where we should go to find people.
Everything comes back to the time we
spend planning. The most important point made, though, was this: We aren't just
planning for a lesson or activity or whatever it is we have scheduled. We plan
for their eternities. These lessons, the Spirit felt, the testimonies shared,
all of these things contribute to whether or not the people we teach will
decide to follow the example of Jesus Christ and make covenants with God.
Needless to say, we've been watching
the planning training videos A LOT this week, and we've seen amazing things
happen as we've really applied the principles learned from trainings and
meetings. I love going forth and applying the things I learn each day, whether
it be in a study or from pondering or from a meeting.
Two experiences to share this
week:
We found an incredible new
investigator - Ally - through a media referral. She's been
going to church for a while with one of her friends who lives in Layton. We
walked in and she said, "So how do we do this? I want everything!" It
was amazing. We sat down right then and taught her the first lesson. She
committed to be baptized! The Spirit in the room was so strong. You can tell
that she knows it's true, and she desperately wants to do all that Heavenly
Father has asked of us. We asked her what stood out to her about the Church,
and she testified of the cleansing power of the Atonement and how she knows she
can repent and change to ultimately return to live with her Heavenly Father.
We also had an amazing Temple
Square visit with Lisa, one of our recent converts. She LOVES the
gospel, and is always seeking to learn more. We went and saw the Joseph Smith movie. I know Joseph Smith is
a prophet of God. I know he restored the true gospel of Jesus Christ on the
earth. I know that we now have the Priesthood, the authority of God given to
men to bless His children, on the earth so we can perform those ordinances
necessary to return to our Heavenly Father. My testimony was strengthened of
the truthfulness of the restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ this past
week, and especially of the prophet, Joseph Smith, from that experience with
Lisa.
I know this gospel is true! I know
the Book of Mormon to be the word of God! I know we will grow closer to Him as
we read and pray every single day and do those things He has asked us to do. I
love my Savior, Jesus Christ. I know He lives! I know He loves us. I know our
Heavenly Father is always watching over us. I know we are in His hands. I know
He loves us more than we can ever comprehend. I know it because I have asked
for myself. I invite each of you to take the time and to ask, to kneel and
pray, and to ask if God is watching over you. I promise if you ask sincerely,
He will let you know that you are never alone.
I love you all! Remember to smile
and to look for the miracles in every day :)
Love,
Sister Holbrook
the old one
Mormon 5:21,23
Ether 12:27
I love the temple. And my companion :)
Me and Sister Tucker at Bountiful Temple.
The four Wells Stake Sisters at the Bountiful Temple.
And this is the day I walked out of the house wearing two different shoes. This is why we have companions.
I love the Salt Lake Temple!!!
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