Week 69: MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!!

THIS WEEK WAS THE MOST AMAZING WEEK OF MY MISSION!!!!

We have been seeing miracles after miracles as this transfer has come to a close and Christmas has been approaching!!! Last week we got 4 new investigators!! THIS WEEK WE GOT 3 MORE EVEN THOUGH IT WAS

That's one way to take your tree home!

CHRISTMAS AND PEOPLE ARE BUSY!!! God is so good!!!! This week started out super eventful!!! Sister Gartside got SO SICK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We were leaving an appointment and oh my goodness...not good!!!! Poor thing!!! So we drove home super fast (I tried not to make her sick I promise!!) and she was up all night sick :( I tried to help her but there's not much you can do :( So we didn't sleep very much. The next day the Sister Training Leader's came and Sister Steele and I went to District Meeting and went to work!!!! Throughout the day we switched in and out that way we could all work! Sister Steele and I literally had 30 min to go out and work. We prayed and then she said "lets go find a new investigator". Literally 5 min later we we knocked on a door of a street that's been tracted out a bagillion times and he wanted to learn more. As we talked to him we found out that he has had a rough life, but he had turned his life around. As

he was talking I got the prompting to ask him If he's been baptized!!!! I was like man...that's a bold question...but I did it! I asked him and he said yes, but he should probably be baptized again and recommit! HOW PERFECT!!! We told him we prepare people for baptism. We taught him the Restoration and he was so excited to come to church and get baptized!!! IT WAS SUCH A MIRACLE!!! Even though Sister Gartside was sick we still were finding people to teach!!!! Later that night though....I started to feel sick....then THE SICKNESS HIT ME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I DESPISE BEING SICK IT'S SO GROSS!!!!!!!!!!!! So I called the nurse, but she told me to still go out so I did....it was really hard but we made it through!!!! We were able to have an awesome lesson with our investigator Levi!!! I prayed the whole time that I would be able to make it through...that I wouldn't get nauseous!!! We talked about the Book of Mormon and gave him more of the background!! He is excited to read and pray! I made it

through the lesson fine!!! but right after...back to being sick!!! Heavenly Father definitely blesses you for doing his work!!! Friday CHRISTMAS EVE EVE!!!!!! We set up a lesson with our investigator Leslie! Her and her kids came to the Ward Christmas party last week!!!! We were expecting just to meet with her at the mall in between her Christmas shopping but her and her husband showed up!!! So we taught him and he is interested so we got ANOTHER NEW INVESTIGATOR!!! SURPRISE!!!!!! We asked them in the lesson if they would be baptized and they looked at each other and said YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WE ARE SO EXCITED FOR THEM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Their whole family is going to be changed because of this gospel!!! They are going to be so much happier and closer with Jesus Christ!!!!!!!!!!!! SO AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I AM SO HAPPY FOR THEM!!!!! After we had to rush to the store and grab a rotisserie chicken....because we forgot...and we were having a nice Christmas dinner with the YSA sisters!!! It was

so cute!! Sister Steele used a white sheet (clean I'm assuming) as our tablecloth and laid out little place settings for all of us!! We had chicken, stuffing, potatoes, yams, veggies, cider....quite the meal!!!  After we were walking around downtown talking to people, and we had been invited to a party at a member's house...we didn't want to go because...we probably wouldn't be very effective...but we prayed about it and we felt really good about going...weird...but okay lets do it!! So we went and MaryAnne our investigator was there!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WE HADN'T SEEN HER IN ABOUT A MONTH!!! That was a miracle!! Then we talked with these two non-members for about 45 min about missionary work, the light the world video, the church

and all that jazz!!! Really a miracle!!!! So good!!! Saturday.....CHRISTMAS EVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We went on a random Blitz with the sisters, they felt prompted to go so we went!!! I went with Sister Steele and we were walking and talking and I said Hey there's a potential there....lets go knock it!! So we did and the lady opened the door and we got to talking!! She said she was weary of the Book of Mormon and she said, "Well if the Book of Mormon is true then I'll stand before God and say whoops missed that one!!!" We told her she could find out if it's true on her own!! No pressure we would just come teach her and she could read and pray and ask God. We taught her the Restoration and just like that .....WE GOT AN OTHER NEW INVESTIGATOR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 3 for the week!!!!!!! MIRACLES!!!!!!!! Turns out she works at an old folks home too, so I asked if we could come caroling and she said they would love that!!! Yay!!!! Sister Steele and I also found a potential named Utah...we had a great laugh about that one!!! For

My Christmas Card from Gram!

Christmas Eve dinner we went to the Vaski's house!!! They do seafood appetizers for Christmas eve....IT WAS SO GOOD!!!!! I FINALLY TRIED SCALLOPS!!!!!!!!!!! Yum!!!! They are such a sweet family!!! They took really good care of us :) After eating there we went and spent Christmas Eve with Sister Stevenson!!! She got baptized on Christmas Eve 20 something years ago so we celebrated with her!!!! Christmas day was so good!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We woke up and FINISHED THE BOOK OF MORMON!!!!!!! We've been reading it for 4-5 months now and we finished it Christmas day!!! I just flipped through the pages at all the red markings where Jesus is mentioned and the doctrine I had highlighted and just knew it was true!!! :) After that we opened our gifts!!! My family is so sweet!! They sent me all my favorite things!!!! It was like I was just at home!!! :) I love them so much!!!  Our church service was amazing because we had a General Authority come!!!! Elder DeFeo! His brother is in our Stake Presidency!! It was a sacrament meeting with
tons of musical numbers and then the General Authority spoke to us! I got to sing in a choir for one song!! So good!!! After we walked around the streets and talked to people! We went and caroled at Lisa's old folks home!!

THEN WE GOT TO SKYPE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! My family is so wonderful!!! Even though my sSkype shut off 2 times they still stayed on to talk to me hahahahahhh Then in the middle of it....MY  NEIGHBOR....MY BEST FRIEND SINCE THE WOMB....KAILEY CAME OVER TO SEE IF WE HAD A EGG SHE COULD BORROW....IN THE MIDDLE OF THE SKYPE CALL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I WAS SO EXCITED TO SEE HER!!!!!!!!!!!!PERFECT TIMING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!hahah It was such a good surprise!!!! LOVE YOU MAJEWSKI'S!!!!! After we had to rush to our dinner!!!! We had dinner with a lady in our ward that doesn't have much family!! She did so much for us and got us presents!!! Very humbling....I love her a lot!! She gave us so many leftovers though...oh my goodness too much!!! On the way home, I saw all of the homeless people outside and I felt like I should give our leftovers to them...so as I was driving I was on the look out!! I saw one man huddled down and I knew I needed to talk to him. So I pulled over...my companion was a little scared of why I was going to talk to a homeless man in a dark

area and scary area in town haha I said "Hey! Have you had supper yet???" He said "no I haven't." I said well here we have some for you!!! I gave him the whole thing!!!! We even happened to have an extra wrapped fork in the car from take out a few weeks ago....it was perfect!!! His name is Clinton!! We talked to him about the Gospel and what we do as missionaries!! He was just so happy to have some food :) I WAS SO HAPPY TOO!!! I've never really done anything like that before.....I'm not telling you this to seem like "look what I did" but I'm telling you because in that moment I TRULY FELT THE SPIRIT OF CHRISTMAS....I literally felt so good!!!! So spiritual, so charitable, so christ-like, so filled with joy!!! Clinton was so happy and I know that he appreciated it!! I will never forget that :) His bright smile as we simply shared with him what we had to share and the message of Jesus Christ. This has been such a memorable Christmas :) One of the best yet! I hope you all had a great Christmas!!

Please enjoy our Mission Christmas Poem:

With clouds over head, a storm in the night. we beg and we plead for the moon to shine bright. 

To lighten our path, to show us the way, all we can think is to love serve, and obey.

Through mountains of snow, and showers of rain,

we sometime must climb for our personal gain.

if we pray and we ask we are promised his love.

His heavenly guidance, from a world up above.

Fully seeking the truth, we know he'll respond. no moon has appeared,

I guess we'll pray on. we try and we try but nothing appears,

frustration and doubt often lead us to tears.

we come in at night on our knees, in our room, when a new star appears,

 "but god, where's the moon? you promise you'd give 

what we asked in his name, am I the one lacking, or

 is my faith to blame"?

"my child, you know not what you asketh of me.

for with the light of the moon for a time you would see.

If you follow my star, this new light will shine,

forever and ever, no matter the time.

sometime when you ask your desire is pure but wait for my answer, i knoweth the cure.

The light of the world, he's the one who can heal, so keep pressing forward, his atonement is real.

Remember this star , it shone bright in the sky.  when the savior was born for all of mankind.

He is there as your guide, the light for your path, follow him home, and you'll receive all that I have" 

by Elder Lieber

Love you and Happy New Year!!!!

2017 is going to be a great one :)

Love,

Sister Peterson :)