"I Felt the Lord Guide Me"

   We've been anticipating the beginning of the Christmas Season for a long time now. We have so many new missionaries that have never had the 'Christmas Lights' experience-but they are in for a treat! Tonight, as we watched some of them, you could see the worry in their faces. Do you remember how intimidating a large group of people can be? But I have been so proud of them. Despite personal struggles, they go forward. On opening night, one of the new VC sisters that has been shy and hesitant invited a group of over 10,000 to come to the Visitor's Center. She did it. I don't think she thought she could, but she did. I was so proud of her for accepting that assignment and following through. Over the past few days, we've seen other missionaries stepping up and going beyond their comfort zones.
   Even experienced missionaries have struggles. Here's the story of one elder's personal miracle:

My Companion and I are dreaming of a "White Christmas," and that dream kept us going this past week through some difficulties and disappointments.  I am grateful for what you shared after zone leader council; that we must have it in our hearts that the Lord will bless us with those baptisms and that we must pray and work as if it already happened. 

One miracle that I experienced this week was at the opening night of Chirstmas lights.  I was excited for it the whole week, and woke up on Friday morning looking forward to working at the lights that evening.  When we arrived for the meeting, however, I was extremely nervous.  I don't know why, but I was really, really anxious and had trouble keeping still.  I haven't felt that in a while.  With a prayer in my heart, I went with my companion, and we parted to go to our assigned areas.  I did my very best and prayed for the faith sufficient to be able to talk with and invite everyone.  I am sad to say that I did let a few people pass by that I felt impressed to talk with, and will repent of that, but I felt the Lord guide me and help me as I spoke with people.  The nervousness that I had felt so strongly went away as I did my best to put into practice that which I was taught and focus on the message of the Restoration.  We were able to see and feel that we were successful as a group that night, and I am so grateful for the opportunity that we have to serve at the lights.

Miracles in Mariposa (Liahona 4th ward)

Sister Bassett,


Wow, that's a really catchy subject name for this email; sounds like a movie or something and I wasn't even trying. Anyways, this is Elder Gibson, Sister Bassett. I am writing in response to your request for recent miracles that have occurred. We have seen some amazing miracles with a family we have started teaching about three weeks ago. They are Maria and Susana, both sisters with 5 kids in total. Just to give you some background first, both are in their 30's or so, and Maria has a 21-year-old son. Susana is not married, but has two sons and two daughters with a boyfriend currently working in New Mexico. Anyways, Susana has been Catholic, Jehovah's Witness, "Christian," pretty much everything, but she has been less than impressed with them all. She said that she had been praying to know what the truth really was, and shortly afterwards we TTI'd (talked to her on the street) and taught Maria outside their house, and began teaching her on our second visit. She told us last week that the 1st time she came to Church she knew that it was true, and wants to get baptized.

It has been an amazing experience to teach these women. They are both shy. Maria is very cautious, but they are amazing. Susana has an incredible knowledge of true doctrine, even though some of it has never been taught to her. While we were teaching them the Plan of Salvation, we asked them what they thought happened to us after death, and she sheepishly explained what she thought was only her idea, but it was EXACTLY correct. She described Spirit Paradise perfectly, and she understood everything very well. We are still teaching them, and they will be baptized soon.

Thank you for the opportunity to share these experiences, Sister Bassett, I really appreciate it. Merry Christmas!

-Elder Gibson

Hi Sister Bassett!

This is Elder Silski serving in Payson.  Here's just a quick miracle for you:

So on Sunday night, past 8:30, we were looking for someone to visit, who would let us in or talk to us.  We were scrambling for names, and we decided to see a referral named Isaac.  It was worth a shot, we figured, maybe we could set up a return time with him, if he was awake.  So we go by, it's now 8:45, there's a dim light on and we question whether or not to knock.  Sure, why not?  So we knock, and a man answers and says, "Hi, come in."  All right then!  We were received into his home and taught him the Restoration.  He's a great man who has strong faith in Christ as his personal Savior and Redeemer.  But he's willing to hear us out.

How often does that happen?  Someone letting missionaries into their home at 8:45 at night?  He did.  A tender mercy!

Elder Silski

After the Trial of Your Faith

This is another account of the story from the post yesterday. Still a great story! If you have quesstions about the lds church and our beliefs-ask me! Or you can talk to missionaries via a live chat at mormon.org 

Dear Sister Basset,
      Let's see... For Elder matsunaga and I, we really had a tremendous week last week due to the tender mercies of our heavenly Father. Last transfer, I waited and waited for such miracles, and they never came... well they way I was expecting. And just this last week, we saw miracle after miracle. Tuesday: We found a great family who had talked to missionaries a while back and wanted their girls in the youth program and wanted comfort in an ever-so changing world. Wednesday: We talked to ANOTHER great family of 5 that had talked to missionaries in the past and is really excited about learing about the gospel. Thursday: We found ANOTHER great family through a random TTI who is searching for guidance amongst their family. That same night we taught ANOTHER family who we had just found who had a neighbor over who was really interested. Friday: We got a referral and went to contact it and right away we were invited in to teach them, and they expressed their desire to find a true church. Saturday: We got a member referral. We taught this lady at the member's house and the Lady (Patricia) is in search for peace in her life. After the lesson she held The Book of Mormon, looked into our eyes as her's filled up with tears and said, "This is the first time I've felt this peace. I NEED this in my life". That same day we tried to contact a referral, and we read it wrong, and in so doing, we found a 16 year old boy who is really confused about all the churches and sincerely wants to know where to go to.
     So for us, it was just a miracle after another... I was very grateful to just be a part of that week for us. There are many dates to be set this week and there's no where else I would rather be but here in the Arizona Mesa Mission.
    Elder Kunz

The Power of Prayer

Dear Sister Bassett,
I recorded this in my journal on Saturday, the 21 November: "The miracle for me today...was the lesson we had with a woman named Patricia.  We met Patricia through a member that the Elders (Benson and Derochie) had met in a dinner appointment and then had referred to us.  That lesson was one of the most powerful, spiritual lessons I feel that I have had in my mission.  She was just so...prepared, I suppose I would say.  She hungered after the message of the restoration and even told us Joseph Smith's story back to us (without invitation) after we had explained it.  We invited her to pray, and even though she was nervous and anxious to do it, she did and toward the end of her prayer, began to speak with a great deal of emotion.  With tears in her eyes as she closed the prayer, she said after we asked what she was feeling: 'I feel...this peace.  I feel...beautiful.'  She looked at us with a piercing gaze and, with The Book of Mormon outstretched toward us in her hands, said "I need this peace.  I need these things.  My children need to feel these things.  I want to be a good mother. I want to be a good wife to my husband.  I want to be a good person.'"
 We left and said a prayer in the car in thanks for the miracles that God has been pouring out upon us, for that miracle is only one of thousands more that we have seen in these few short days.  I am grateful for the opportunity that I have to serve again with a dear friend and fellowservant in the work, and for the time that we have to do something about the miracles that God is sending to us.  I know that they are not for our benefit alone, but for us to bless the lives of others.
 Elder R


*To receive your own copy of The Book of Mormon" visit mormon.org

Heavenly Father Will Let Us Know

In this post, I'll share a letter from one of our zone leaders. Note that in the beginning he says this story isn't a 'huge miracle'. I don't know if I agree with him on that point, and I think if we were to ask 'Daivd', he wouldn't think so either.  There is more to the story than Elder Mace has shared, and more than he probably even knows. It involves the softening of someone's heart and an entirely different person receiving and acting on a prompting at the right time.  (What does it mean to receive a prompting? Well that's a story for another time! I'll try and post some notes about that from one of our zone conferences.) The Bible Dictionary explains that miracles are manifestations of divine or spiritual power. Who else but God know our hearts and has the power to change them? And He certainly loves us enough to send others our way when we need them. Certainly, this story fits that category.  Sometimes, as missionaries we see so many miracles, we don't realize just how big they are so we look harder than we need to in order to see the Hand of God. In some ways, I believe there's no such thing as a small miracle. Let's not be shy about sharing them and giving some credit when its due. Thanks, Elder Mace, for sharing this one with me!


Sister Bassett,
   This isn't a huge miracle, but to me it was neat. I thought I would share this recent one with you.
    I got an impression to stop by a former investigater's house this week. His name kept coming to my mind, and I had a distinct impression that I needed to visit him. His name is David. Elder Gomez and I taught David for a long time, and he was suppose to get baptized but didn't quit smoking cigars in time. So we pushed the baptismal date back a few weeks. Then Elder Page came, and David suddenly started avoiding us. He stopped coming to church; he wouldn't answer the door for us (even when we knew he was home), and he wouldn't even answer our phone calls. In fact, he wouldn't even answer any phone calls from his friends in the church. We finally stopped trying to go by and call him because it just wasn't working. 
   After a while, I forgot about David. But this week I strongly felt like we needed to go back and try him again. I didn't know why, because I figured he'd still just ignore us. But Elder Seaborn and I went. Something changed, because when we knocked on his door, he warmly welcomed us and invited us in. It turns out that he will be moving to Pheonix soon because of financial problems, so it's a good thing we caught him. We can teach him a few times, get his new address, and help him find the other missionaries in Phoenix.
   It was a neat experience to me, because Heavenly Father knows when His children are prepared. And He'll let us know.

Thanks,
Elder Jason Mace

I could tell God has been working in their lives

From Elder Neil Crook:
   I wanted to share some miracles I've seen since I've been on my mission, at least one in particular. In Maricopa Stake we found out that the young women have been bringing their friend out to church for a while. We got the ok from her mom to teach her. Well, she was baptized just shortly afterwards. So we invited her mom as well to hear the lessons, and she was open to it after her daughter's baptism. 
   The miracle was while we were teaching her, we didn't know what to do. It just seemed like whenever we brought up baptism, she would shy away. During the time of teaching, they went from going to a place with no eletricity and water to a save-the-family-organization where she got a job. So we were hoping to see her recognize God's hand in blessing her so much. 
   One night, we dropped by without her daughter home. She just expressed to us that she wants to be baptized, but that her daughter wanted this to be her thing. Her daughter meant everything to her. Well, we decided to have a lesson about families in a member's home. We brought our family calendars with us. We shared this and asked the daughter what she could do to help her mom. Then she said, "Mom, I think you should get baptized." It was awesome, and I could tell God has been working in their lives and they are still active and have callings now. :D But yeah, thanks Sister Bassett for the inspiration about recording our miracles. Hope more will continue to come!!!

The Power of Godliness is Manifest

Doctrine and Covenants 84:20 "Therefore, in the ordinances thereof, the power of godliness is manifest." It is a miracle when the spirit touches someone's heart and confirms to them the truthfulness of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. Often this happens when people are present during priesthood ordinances like blessings, baptisms, the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost, and during the blessing and passing of the Sacrament. 


This is a letter from Elder Chance Pebley about one of these types of miracles:
    So this last Tuesday, a lady was baptized. She is the sister of Melinda Powell who used  to be heavily involved with the Calvary Baptist Church. She even started the Awana program for those guys. I am pretty sure that is like a mutual thing-only for all ages. Anyways, she met with Elder Johnson and I when I first came here in June. She had always taught about Christ, but she told us she always also taught to stay away from the Mormons and their church. 
   So after we taught her she felt bad, because she knew she was leading people away from the truth and didn't feel she could be forgiven of doing those things. So we bore testimony to her about the atonement and left her with Alma 36 to read. She came back the next week on fire and willing to do whatever it took to get baptized. She knew that The Book of Mormon was true. There are more miracles in that story that I could talk about, too!   Anyways she was baptized and her sister who attended Calvary with her attended her baptism. She hadn't yet read from The Book of Mormon or met with missionaries. Anyways, she was present for her baptism and felt the spirit there. Then this Tuesday she was baptized. From the single experience of being present at Melinda's baptism, she felt the spirit so powerfully that she couldn't deny that what her sister was doing was true and right. At her baptism, I asked her what her experience was like meeting with the missionaries and reading The Book of Mormon. She related back to Melinda's baptism and said, "I knew it was true before I even opened The Book of Mormon." She has two daughters that she wants the missionaries to start teaching in Taylor and to get baptized when they know it is true. 
They too, go to Calvary just like their mom and aunt did. 
  Here are some pics of Melinda and her sister Kristine. Melinda is the one with Elder Coffman and I. 

The other is Kristine and her two daughters. 

    The onyl time I had seen Kristine was at Melinda's baptism, and I didn't have a chance to talk to her because she was surrounded by members, but she asked me to baptize her. It was an INCREDIBLE experience! Have a great week!

Miracle-It's Raining!

(An email from Elder Jeffrey Gomez)
No, but really this week's miracle comes from my first transfer on the mission.

Crystal and Jason had felt the spirit and were eager to join the church.  Because there were some setbacks, they had to wait.  During their wait, Crystal ran out of medications she had been taking for a mental disorder that had plagued her since she was four years old.  The prescription couldn't be filled because of limited supplies.  She stayed strong for a few days, but later had to be hospitalized.  She spent several days in the hospital, and we regularly kept in contact with Jason to see how she was doing.  The time came when her prescription was filled and she returned to their apartment.  She immediately had my companion and I head on over to give her a priesthood blessing.  I performed the anointing and my companion promised her that if she would remain faithful, her ailments would leave her and she would return to full health.  Time passed and she remained healthy.  My companion was transferred out of the area.  A couple of months went by, and we continued to visit Jason and Crystal.  One day Crystal decided to tell us what actually happened as she recieved the blessing.  She felt a warm feeling come over her, and she knew that God had healed her.  Five days passed, and she realized that she'd forgotten to take her medication.  She took the medication, but it made her feel sick.  She was overwhelmed with joy when she realized that she didn't need the medication anymore!  The priesthood of God is very real and has the power to heal according to God's will and according to the faith of those involved.

Trunk or Treat Missionary style

I don't know how many trunk or treat parties there were throughout the valley, but I do know most of them had some pretty great displays. Some missionaries decorated their trunks, 'borrowed' a trunk from a member, or decorated a couple of chairs in between their bikes. They were so creative! Elder Woolf and Elder Diaz used sidewalk chalk to draw the plan of salvation out in front of their trunk. They also had a DVD playing. They worked hard to invite the neighborhood to come, and they came.

I'm hoping the missionaries will send in some more pictures.

Can you see the pictures on these pumpkins? You have the plan  of salvation, the first vision, CTR, VC, AMM, and Lehi's vision of the tree of Life. Pretty awesome!

Sister Missionaries-A Family Tree

Is it a revelation? Or just me!?

I had a pretty cool missionary experience today. I always carry a blue Book of Mormon with me in my back pack and in my car. When I am waiting for a bus, or whenever I have extra time, I just grab it and start reading it. This has two purposes: 1, It helps me do more scripture study. 2. I want to give it to someone and it is a good conversation starter for that purpose! I got on the "wrong" bus today when trying to go to class. This bus took me ALL OVER! While I was sitting there, I thought "I should take out the Book and start reading. Maybe the girl next to me will want to know more." It seemed silly, since I THOUGHT I was going to be getting off momentarily. I figured it was just a thought, not revelation. But then I thought about all the great talks on receiving revelation at conference and decided it wouldn't hurt to try. I noticed that my bus driver kept reading from her book at every stop light. Every time we were stopped for one reason or another she pulled out that book and started reading. That's when the spirit spoke to me and said "she really enjoys reading and is almost done with that book. You should give her a NEW book to read." As I was getting off of the bus, I told her that I noticed how much she liked reading and that I wanted to give her MY favorite book to read. This poor, sad, crusty copy of the Book of Mormon had survived a rainstorm with me a few weeks ago and has been read a lot... I apologized for the condition of the book and told her that it was very loved! She was TOTALLY excited and asked me a little more about it. I shared a little more, then gave her a pass along card as a book mark. I missed my class (it was a VERY long bus route). But i think I caught the "right" bus according to the Lord, not the "wrong" one that I thought originally. Gotta love it!

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Competition Put to Good Use

Elder (Christian) Johnson gave a training about using the calendar to help people reach their baptismal date. Here's a visual of his object lesson.

Ingredients: 2 competitive missionaries (thanks elder moffitt & pasenelli),

tootsie rolls, 9 X 13 pan, and a crowd to cheer them on

The concept: You want to be a focused missionary and keep your eyes faced downward on the pan. Elder Johnson will call out a point of progress for your investigator (setting a date, reading, going to church, praying...). Then he will drop a tootsie toll. The focused missionary wants to be the first to grab it-but only after it has touched the pan.

It was getting a little fierce. They each had a stack of tootsie rolls, but Elder Pasenelli was edging Elder Moffitt out.

I was paying more attention to my camera and trying to get a good angle, so I was as surprised as they were when...

...the next point of progress for the investigator was, "You find out your investigator hasn't quit smoking 2 days before his date," and instead of grabbing a tootsie toll,

...they grabbed an egg.

 Gross

An Encore Performance

Does this look familiar?
President did the focus training again and it was great. If I have more time tomorrow, I'll post a little more about it.