WEEK 7: Just Keep Swimming

This week was a tough missionary week. Other people's agency and decision-making is really frustrating sometimes, and pretty much all of our people flaked on us at some point this week. Our teaching pool has stayed the same the entire time that I've been here, and it's hard to try to plan how to help them when they just don't accept anything you try. Missionaries feel a lot of emotions, and I think we've felt every single one of them this week.... We had Zone Conference with President and Sister Rodarte this week, and they really encouraged everyone to prayerfully shake up our teaching pool, stop teaching those who aren't progressing or responding to us. They promised that if we would, we'd find new people to teach. So now we're in the uncomfortable stage of phasing out people we've been teaching forever who aren't progressing, but we haven't really found enough new people to make up for those we've put on the back burner. That being said, there have been a few miracles this week where we've been led to people's homes as they're literally pulling into their driveway, and it's been so cool. When faith to be exactly obedient is put into action, miracles happen!

I have 2 spiritual thoughts for this week!

The Doctrine of Jesus Christ is always referenced in the scriptures, but growing up I never felt like I actually understood what it all entailed. For pretty much my whole life I've never been able to understand exactly what it was. Is it a set of rules/specific commandments? Is it a belief, like eternal families, or salvation? I had no idea and could never place my finger on it. And then I started my mission and was told straight out in the MTC that the purpose of missionaries is to teach about and invite people to live the Doctrine of Jesus Christ, which is simply having faith in Him, repenting of our sins and mistakes, being baptized by proper authority, recieving the Spirit of God, and enduring to the end. Once I learned that, it clicked in my brain and my understanding of the gospel has increased so much. It's so apparent in my reading of the Book of Mormon. The doctrine and gospel of Jesus Christ is literally written on every single page if the Book of Mormon. Every single story gives us an example of living the Doctrine, every prophet wrote about following those five steps. Those five things make up the fulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ, and those are what was restored to the Earth through Joseph Smith, and it's all found within the Book of Mormon. It's so simple now that I know it, and maybe I'm just a step behind everyone else and everyone around me has known it forever, but it's semi new information to me. But hopefully this helped someone else, because until I was told it straight out, I didn't make the connection.

My next thought/experience is about prayer. We had an experience this week that was really powerful to me. We were meeting with one of our friends on their patio, intending to teach a lesson. But as soon as we sat down, the energy in our friend became very strange. They were talking a million miles an hour and it didn't make sense. I can't even explain it; they were clearly speaking English but it sounded so foreign to my ears. It was very strange and very eerie, and they became more frantic as they tried to explain but neither me or my companions understood. It was truly just not making any sense, and we all had pits in our stomach. Our friend got so worked up and the weird feeling got so much stronger that we asked if we could pray for them. As soon as Sister Mudrow closed the prayer, the entire atmosphere changed. Our friend's eyes cleared up in a way that I can't explain, and when they spoke again, it was finally coherent. Their demeanor became much more subdued and calm and the wonderful person that we know finally seemed like they were sitting in front of us. We're really not sure what happened or what the cause was, but I do know that there is power in praying in the name of Jesus Christ. He has the power to dispell darkness, to soften hearts, and to make things light, and He does it through the Holy Spirit. Even speaking the name of Jesus Christ brings power, and when done so to our Heavenly Father in prayer, we gain divine access to a piece heaven.

Sister Long asked me to accompany her at a Why I Believe devotional this week, so I spent some time dusting off my below average piano skills, and it actually went well! Sister Long has such a lovely voice and it was so fun to play the piano again. I'm no Mozart, and it seemed like a daunting task to play in front of a chapel full of people, as well as President and Sister Rodarte(!) but it was fun to do something that scares me. And it was a great experience. So, either consistently practicing an instrument for an hour every single day really does help you, or God was really just giving me a lot of extra help to pull it off... In reality it's 10000% a good combo of both, so maybe my moral of the story is to trust God, but also to do your part.

It's been SO humid this week! It's felt like Virginia-level humidity, and it's been crazy. This is the biggest monsoon season Nevada has had in 10 years, so it's been cloudy and humid almost every single day this week. Not a ton of rain here in Henderson, but every night we can see it coming down across the valley. That's been a tender mercy, because if we'd been facing all our rejection and last minute cancelations this week AND it had been 110⁰, I probably would have lost my mind. God really is looking out for us in the small things. 

It's been a hectic week and I really don't know what else to say. I haven't really had time to process anything that's happened this week. But our spirits are high, we are very grateful for Pday today, and we're looking forward to a new week. Thank you to everyone who sends emails or letters throughout the week, I read every single one and I'm trying to figure out a good method for how to respond! Just know that even if you don't get a response, I did read it and I am so grateful! I love you all, have a good week!!

Chaotically,

Sister Malmstrom 

PICTURES

- We've had some pretty incredible sunsets recently!

- RAINBOW

- Pictures from Zone Conference: selfie with President and Sister Rodarte, and selfies while eating lunch:)

- Saturday and Sunday selfies

- Every Thursday we volunteer at St. Timothy's, which is a soup kitchen. Allen is one of the men who runs it, and he's so cool!