Monday December 29, 2014

White Christmas

I am pretty sure this year was the first white Christmas that I have ever had in my life, or at least that I can remember.  This week has really been a pretty good week, all such a blur so this email may be a little jumbled up.

   So on Tuesday we taught Amber St.George, the family that we had found the week before. It went so well and she was so prepared.  The spirit was there so strong and she understood that when she was baptized it wasn't part of that priesthood authority and she wants to be baptized by that proper authority! I can not tell you how many times I have recited Joseph Smith's first vision and every time I feel the spirit so strongly, it is by far my favorite lesson to teach those learning about the gospel.  I have decided that when Megan and I go to the Stake Presidents house to be released I just want to teach that lesson one last time to him(that is my request).  Anyway I also can testify how the adversary is real! No joke right after the first vision, her roommate came in who is less active and just started throwing out random facts. Nothing bad but it didn't add to anything. And then when extending the baptismal date all heck broke lose with kids and everything, so the mood was gone, but this week we are planning on putting her on date.  One sad thing is that she is holding off on her kids learning for the moment because of all the changes in their life and as well as some legal issues and she wants to learn for herself first. But I am still pretty excited for her! It was a great lesson overall, very typical as a missionary, there is always something that distracts from the spirit.
    Christmas eve and Christmas was a really great day to see members and those that we are working with. We had tons of fun and were filled with food to the brink.  I even got the chance to have some family traditions still, the people I live with acutally have pizza for their Christmas eve dinner as well so I got to have some when I went home. I also got to participate in a gingerbread house competition.  Christmas time is such a unique time as a missionary, but I just love the spirit that is in the air.  I plan on still using the "He is the Gift" as much as I can until I go home to keep the "Spirit of Christ" going here in the Boise area.

    So the day after Christmas my companion was sick. I was not too happy about that, but I wasn't going to let that stop me.  After all of my normal missionary study schedules in the morning I called up some sisters to go on exchanges with. Even though I am not an STL anymore I got our STL to approve me going with some sisters that live literally a street away from us.  So i still got to go out and work and see one of our investigators.  Just being home for those few hours made me stir crazy, i really hope this is the last one for this transfer. I did not like that feeling of being home.  But for those few hours that I went out I felt so productive and the Lord blessed me and the sister I was with to be able to teach in unity.

    So when I was on exchanges we went to our appointment with Sallie Fogg and it was such a great lesson.  We focused a lot on prayer and how she is going to recieve an answer.  We focused on Moroni 10:3-5. about the desire she has and the real intent.  She told us she wants to read all of the Book of Mormon, she is in Alma 30, before she prays about it.  We explain to her about not waiting for the "right" moment but to be continually praying and asking if it is true while she is reading. I don't want her to wait till the very end expecting something and then not get anything because the whole time previous she hadn't been reading it with the spirit.  She said she is not ready to come to church yet, there is something that is holding her back and now it is our job to figure out what her real concern is and help her to resolve it.

    Okay funny story for yesterday. So there is a less active family that I told you about last week. Well yesterday we went over to help the mom(in her late 20s) get her 4 kids under 7 ready for church.  It was a little chaotic and we were running around like a chicken with our heads cut off hahaha So she knew that the church was on Locus Grove so we left the house first and I had a thought about making sure she knew which one but brushed it off. So we got to the church and waited 5 minutes and they were there. For a second I thought maybe they had bailed out and turned around, so I texted her. So turns out that she went to another church on Locus Grove hahaha Well I laugh at it now, but I was a little sad yesterday. We had put so much time and effort getting the family ready and next week will be harder because we switch from 1pm church to 9am. I guess she knew some people in the other ward like her family doctor so it all worked out. She text us "first goal make it to A church, next week make it to the RIGHT ward" hahaha Only in Idaho and Utah would you have the issue of having multiple churches all on a road(there is four by the way on Locus Grove).  So hopefully next week it will all work out.

    It was so great to talk to all of you on Christmas! And to hear about all the exciting news! I love you and miss you all! I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas.  Thank you for all the gifts as well! I love them and will put them to good use, you all treat me too well! Until next year....take it easy.(Get it? cuz next time you will hear from me will be next year hahaha) I am loving every minute of my mission and soaking it all up knowing that it is going to end soon :(

Love
Sister Metcalf
He is the Gift

How will you keep the spirit of Christ going in your own life?

 SNOW!

Me with my "Beach House"