WEEK 24: Miracles!

Hey!!

A couple miraculous updates for y'all this week:

1) VANCE IS ON DATE FOR BAPTISM!!! We had an amazing lesson with him and his mom Lucy this week. Our fellowship was amazing, too! We asked Vance if he would like to work towards baptism, and he eagerly said yes. It seemed like he'd been anxiously waiting a long time for us to ask, and he pounced on the invitation. He was so excited and so grateful, and when we knelt to pray with him, he said the most beautiful and heartfelt prayer. We discussed afterward, and Vance settled on Saturday, December 24th as his goal! We are SO excited!! Brother Monga and his mom Lucy were so blunt with him and really helped him fully commit. He has a lot of obstacles to hurdle between now and then, but we know it's completely possible with the Lord. Vance has a very strong Word of Wisdom concern, and he knows it's going to be a battle to fully give it up once and for all. He recieved a beautiful priesthood blessing from his fellowship and from our Bishop, and he is fully ready. He's got the determination and grit that only a true "Neiw Yawkah" can have (he's from Brooklyn). He has such great faith. If anyone can do it, Vance can!! But prayers for him would be greatly appreciated--that he will lose the desire to continue with this substance, and that his faith will increase and he will have the resiliency to keep pushing through!!! And also prayers for his mom Lucy, she knows she's next for baptism but she's a stubborn little lady and won't admit it.

2) Through Vance we met a woman named Sara, and she has sat in for a few of the lessons recently. She's super nice, but is pretty quiet and reserved. She came with Vance when he recieved a priesthood blessing, and she opened up a little bit with us while we were there. When we called Vance Friday morning, he mentioned that Sara had expressed a desire to be baptized, too! We were shocked and confused and hyped out of our minds! They both came to the ward Christmas party that night, and we got some great one-on-one time with Sara. She is an AMAZING woman who has been through so much and she shared a lot with us. She's genuinely one of the most compassionate and giving people that I've ever met. She was taught previously by missionaries and was once on date for baptism. She struggles with a Word of Wisdom concern, and that prevented her from her baptism the first time. But she still has that desire, and we have started working with her to reach that goal!

3) ROGER IS ON DATE FOR BAPTISM AS WELL!!! He wants to "start the New Year off right" and wants to work towards being baptized on Thursday, December 29th. We set him on date on Thursday. It had been a hectic day--full of a fantastic Zone Conference, a crazy attempt at a weekly planning session, a stressful couple of hours serving dinner at St. Timothy's, and all of our lessons and activities running late which just put us further and further behind schedule. BUT. After taking a few (collective) breaths of air to lower our blood pressure, we finally made it to the Price's home with Roger. We had a beautiful lesson about the Sacrament and the covenants we make when we are baptized and recieve the gift of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit was so strong, and it was a tender lesson. We invited Roger to prepare to be baptized and commit fully to God, and, like Vance, he jumped on it immediately. His desire is so strong and he desperately wants to feel supported by his family. We are hoping that with mighty prayers their hearts can be softened and they will see and support his desire to change and enter the waters of baptism.

4) One of our ward Christmas parties happened on Friday. We had invited Jhervon, someone the missionaries talked to a few weeks ago who was nice but not super interested in changing. We dropped off an invitation to him, but didn't think he'd actually come. Oh ye of little faith! Jhervon showed up! And then sat all by himself at a table in the back corner... We asked a family if they'd be willing to go sit with him, and Brother Lundblad immediately power-walked right over to Jhervon and ushered him over to their table. We kept an eye on Jhervon through the night, and it was absolutely incredible to see the way that he lit up with the Lundblads. We eventually made our way over to him and greeted him and it seemed like it was going flawlessly. Later on, another family came and sat with him, too. He stayed the entire time and when he came to say goodbye to us, he told us that they had had a great conversation. They'd told him about how wards work, and he was fascinated by the organization of the church. He said they'd invited him to Sacrament meeting on Sunday, and he definitely wants to come (and he did!)! It was incredible. The members here are PHENOMENAL when it comes to fellowshipping and reaching out to the friends we teach. At big events like that we can't be everywhere at once as missionaries, and it's hectic and stressful. It was amazing to see our members taking care of Jhervon, Sara, and Vance during the moments when we couldn't be with them personally. Because of the Lundblads and Kingsleys welcoming Jhervon--a complete stranger--to their families' dinner tables with open arms, he's now more open to attending church, and we were able to set up a return appointment with him. Miracles are happening all over this area, and we can barely keep up! It's been a crazy week but God is definitely guiding this work, and it's moving quickly. It's amazing to see and be a part of it!

Zone Conference was this week, and it was amazing. This past week we have been studying the ordinance of the sacrament, which ties directly to the Atonement of Jesus Christ. Moving forward into this week, we're studying grace, which also ties directly into Christ's Atonement. My whole life I've struggled to comprehend 'grace', its always felt abstract and too deep for me to understand. But President Rodarte shared this photo with us at Zone Conference while introducing the doctrine of grace, and it felt like an epiphany moment. This photo is of two horses plowing a field. The white horse represents our Savior. The brown horse is us (or in this case, me). President Rodarte, as he was analyzing this photo, said, "To me, it looks like the brown horse is stumbling a little. But the white horse is encouraging, lifting, and helping the brown horse to continue taking steps forward. When applied to our relationship with Christ, this painting shows us grace." His choice of the word 'stumbling' caught my attention, as that's a word I've been using a lot when describing my missionary efforts. I even used it in my interview with President last transfer, as I often feel like I'm not sure what I'm doing or that I feel like I'm not doing the work 'right'. But in that moment, with that visual helping me, I think I took a step closer to understanding and recognizing the grace of Jesus Christ. It's still a doctrine that I don't fully understand, but I have this picture as a reference now. In Matthew 11:29-30, the Savior invites us to "take my yoke upon you... for my yoke is easy and my burden is light." Christ pulls with us, even if our effort looks different every day. That love, that strength, that is grace. And I'm learning that everyday. As long as I keep trying every day, that's enough. Christ's grace is sufficient for me. And for you! And for all of us.  

Other updates from this week:

- The Henderson City Hall has decorated for Christmas, and the lights are so cute.

- Street contacting is tricky in this area, but we found a guy this week named Uriel, and he's so cool!! He had a lot of questions and was really curious about our relationship with God. He seemed to like what we shared and said he would try to make it to church (he unfortunately didn't come, but there's always next week!). It was just cool to see how the Spirit led us to walk a different way than we usually do so that we could meet him and remind him that he's not alone.

- Went to a baptism with Sara and as we were leaving a group of Samoan men came into the church and invited us to their family party happening just outside. We tried to explain that we couldn't join them, but they insisted and it's disrespectful to deny when Samoans try to give you food. So we waltzed into their family reunion and they watched us absolutely stuff our faces. It was amazing.

- I got sick this week, which is lame. Sister Welch somehow knew on Saturday, and I didn't feel a thing. I woke up Sunday and tried to deny it for a couple hours, but she saw through my lies. We went home after church and I zonked out until 7pm. But I can't help it so I'm just resting today and trying to take it easy.

- We met a teeny tiny chocolate lab puppy this week and he was so excited and so small and it was just a fabulous experience meeting him. His name is Tuck and I love him.

I think that's all for this week. Please keep Vance, Lucy, Sara, Roger, Mark, and Paysen in your prayers this week! Miracles are happening. Sending love and Christmas cheer your way.

Love, Sister Malmstrom

231 W Horizon Ridge Pkwy #2226, Henderson, NV 89012