Hi Everyone!
This week was really good! By the end of the week, Sister Steele and I were spiritually exhausted! haha! On Tuesday we met with Roxy. She is still waiting for her birth certificate so she can get everything else to get married! Challenges keep coming her way, and she knows that it is Satan trying to keep her from being baptized. We think it is starting to effect her because we can tell her hope is diminishing. But in that lesson we talked about faith. We read some scriptures in Alma 32, and by the end of the lesson, Roxy was uplifted and encouraged. And she came to church on Sunday with her son, so she is truly enduring to the end!
Towards the late part of the afternoon we went home, and the New Mexico sisters picked us up so we could go to Tucson. We had a full mission conference the next day, and an apostle of the Lord was coming to speak to us! Guess who it was??? You won't believe it............. Jeffrey R. Holland!!! Sister Steele and I almost passed out when President Passey told us that! When we went to the conference, I got to see everyone from the mission!! It
was such a sweet moment to unite with my MTC sisters!! Also I saw Hermana Kerr which was awesome! It is so nice to have someone from your ward serving with you!! :) We set up for a picture, and there were elders standing on the stage, elders sitting at the edge of the stage, sisters standing on the gym floor, and then a row of chairs for Elder Holland, Elder Lynn G. Robbins, and Elder and Sister Heyman (I hope I spelled that right). Then there were elders that would sit on the gym floor. When Elder Holland came in we were speechless! Then we took a few pictures and started to head for the chapel. As we entered the chapel, we told Elder Holland our names and where we were from. I was speechless when I shook his hand! I almost couldn't tell him my name! haha! But there was such a strong and powerful spirit in that meeting. Some of the things that Elder Holland spoke about really struck me: He said, "I don't have the right to transgress! I lost my free agency when I became an Apostle of the Lord!" He also said, "My future is in your hands". He also said that when we return home we shouldn't tell jokes or tell stories about pranking our companions. He told us to testify of the truthfulness of the gospel, and to teach and testify of Jesus Christ. He told us to be an example to the youth that are preparing to go on missions. He pounded the pulpit a few times, and said that he might spit on the front row, (which by the way... I was in the front row:) He gave a beautiful sermon about the Atonement, and we went really deep into it! One of the things that he said was, "The reason the Atonement has power is because we can receive the Holy Ghost." We talked about the Holy Ghost and the Priesthood, and how those two things differentiate us from any other church. One of the most profound things he said that I really took to heart was, "Love your mission, and love it forever." I know that Elder Jeffrey R. Holland is called of God to help us and encourage us, and pressure us a little bit:), to become the missionaries that God wants us to be. That mission conference was truly amazing.
On Thursday we taught Sharon again. Since we had met on Tuesday, she hadn’t smoked one cigarette, or had one cup of coffee. She is so committed to living the commandments of God! Later that day we had a lesson with Tucker, and his family. We talked about faith. We talked about Alma 32, and we drew a picture on the ipad of a seed. I drew the drawing this time.... and to be honest, it looked horrible. But its ok! haha:) It was such a great lesson though! We asked a lot of inspired questions that helped them think. We asked Tucker and his sister Emily what they had faith in. Tucker said Jesus Christ, and Emily said family. They are such sweet kids, and I know that they have testimonies of this gospel. On Friday we did a lot of weekly planning. Then we met with Jade and Gavin Marble before their baptism! They are so sweet! It has been so rewarding to see them grow in the gospel. Jade always offers to say the prayer in lessons, and Gavin at first wasn't open to praying. But since we have taught him, he has prayed more often. Their baptism was so special. It has been the first baptism that I have had in this area, and it has been almost 4 1/2 months! So it has been a struggle, but it was worth it in the end! I love this area, I love the people, and I love being a missionary. This gospel is true, and God is real! I love you all! I hope you have a great week!
Sincerely,
Sister Lindsay Dunn
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