not be reading this..
I love you all! Soo very much. And you guys are in lake powell!!!
AHHH!! How is it? Gosh, I love powell so much. It is impossible to go
to lake powell and deny that God lives. It just makes no sense at all.
And if you did, you'd just go 'straight to jail' slash outer darkness
haha. It is so beautiful and so perfect! Tell me about all the
adventures!
MELISSA'S PAPERS ARE IN?!?!?! AHHHH!!! ODALLALLY!! Tell her she needs
to email me as soon after she opens her call as possible! And to send
me a letter haha. I won't be able to email her back, but I'll write
her. And Lexi??? Are hers in?! She and Ash and Trev look as happy as
clams over there in Fiji!! Fiji right? Or Tahiti? Africa? ... or maybe
it's Guatemala? haha jk. I know its not that :)
You guys. This work is so marvelous. I have witnessed countless
miracles. I wish it were possible to tell them all to you, but there
is no way. Patrick, Troy, Michelle, and we sister missionaries all
gathered at Bishops's house on Wednesday. Patrick laid out all his
concerns, everything that was holding him back. And it was incredible.
He was surrounded by people with whom he trusts and loves and with
whom he has developed deep connections with. Their testimonies, their
experiences, and their words were divinely sent and exactly what
Patrick needed to hear. He's still hesitatnt tho. He's afraid and he
wasn't ready to commit to being baptized even tho its what he knows he
needs to do "eventually".
Then on Friday, we had another lesson with Patrick - but this time at
the Slaters home. Brother and Sister Slater were there, along with
their son who had just landed in America two hours earlier, returning
home from serving a full time mission in Madagascar!! It was
remarkable. We talked about how Christ has shown us the way, that He
has so plainly and clearly shown us exactly what we need to do to
return home. Patrick has faith, and he has repented. But he hasn't
been baptized by God's priesthood authority and he hasn't received the
gift of the Holy Ghost. And thus, he cannot "endure to the end" because
he's not even on the road to get there yet. Everything we said,
everything the Slaters said, it was all from God. God loves Patrick so
very much and through us, He told Patrick everything that he needed to
hear. As he read Mosiah 24:13-15 he said he felt that God was telling
him that in order to fulfill "his mission" (to build homes for
impoverished people in third world countries) he needed to follow
Christ and go on the path laid out before him. I wish I could tell you
all the details on this lesson. I wish I could tell you the details of
every lesson! Oh and guess what... PATRICK CAME TO CHURCH!! AHHHH!!!
HALLELUJAH!!!!!!!! PRAISE THE LORD!!!! But really, praise the Lord.
Each investigator, each person is so precious to our Father in Heaven.
And through us, He speaks to them. Through us He comforts them and
shows them the light. They just need to look. Helaman 5 is such an
incredible chapter. Go read it. I love it so much. There are so many
around us who are lost in "the cloud of darkness." They are filled
with fear and are unable to move forward, literally damned, not able
to progress. But if we look to the Lord, others will see the light in
our faces. By our example and by our bold yet gentle invitation, to
"turn and look," others will look too. They will be filled with the
"unspeakable joy" and peace, filled with the burning fire of the Holy
Ghost as they look to our Savior. Look. Invite. We know the way! So
show those around you. Lift them, help them see, invite them,
encourage them, support them, love them, and plead with them. God is
pleading. Plead with Him.
Sunday was exhausting. We woke up to find many missed calls from
Taneala, our wonderful investigator who is homeless and has been
living at the Bailey CrossRoads shelter. We called her back and she
told us she left the shelter and had to sleep on the streets last
night. She wouldn't give us the details, but she asked that we find
someone to take her in to their home. Sister Rozsa and I were lost. We
had no idea what we should do. We love Taneala and we know that God
loves her. But to ask the ward members to take her in is just far too
great of a request. We were really weighed down and at a loss of what
we should do, but we knew God was with us. He would not fail us nor
forsake us. He had gone before us and was micromanaging our lives. The
weight was lifted. With the counsel of our incredible Bishop, we helped her
search craigslist to find rooms for her to rent . And it was
wonderful to see Taneala take charge. To do all that she could do to
help. We wanted her to take responsibilty, to take control - and she
did! . And God is so great to guide us!
 |
| Patrick came to Church!!!! |
were and there is far more I'd have to tell to be able to explain why, but we were dead.
We just wanted to go out and work. To find and to teach. And God so mercifully
allowed us to, and we found some incredible people! Oh how great is our God!
His love is infinite. His power is matchless. His wisdom is boundless.
I love each and every one of you so dearly. With all my heart.
Sister Julia Jeppsen
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