Yea, I desire to dwell among this people for a time; yea, and perhaps until the day I die

Hello loves,

Great Scott! I'm going BACK to the Valley! I was honestly shocked. I thought for sure I'd finish my mission here in the West Stake. I'm still surprised. But super happy. I've grown SO much in the year since I served in the Valley. I get to apply all these good things and see all the people I taught and loved. It's a surprise but a true tender mercy. I'm not at all the missionary I was when I first got to the Valley. I've changed so much. My heart is so much softer now. I just love this work.

I'm really going to miss Hermana Walton. She's been my best friend these last six months. We were expecting her to leave. It's my fault. I've been talking up the idea to her for the last few weeks. So she's a little stressed to stay. But she's going to be amazing! We found a family last week! We actually just had tons of beautiful miracles!

First and foremost, the most beautiful baptism of all time! Seriously, Miguel and Ramon were so prepared, so happy! The spirit was just so strong. Everything went smoothly. We even sang a musical number (it rocked! I'll try to send the video) and they bore their testimonies of the Book of Mormon. So solid! They wore white shirts and ties and new shiny black shoes to church. All that was missing was their missionary badges! And I will do everything I can to make that happen! I'm sad, I won't get to teach them anymore, but I'm also excited to be their FB friends in a month. Is that so crazy or what? (editor's note: 42 days, but who's counting?)

Ok, so we fasted last Sunday as a mission to find, and I can just see the Lord working here. We've met more spanish potentials in the last 3 weeks than in our entire 3 transfers here combined. Incredible! Last week, one of our lessons fell through and we felt impressed to go to the Windsor Crossing neighborhood. It's old military base housing and they don't allow missionaries to proselyte there but we saw some members' names on the english ward list and we thought we'd give them a try. We weren't even sure if they were active or not. We tried three families and none were home. I just felt like maybe I'd heeded the wrong prompting and we weren't actually supposed to be there. So we prayed and I felt the impression that we needed to be diligent and keep trying! So the next house we try there was a little hispanic boy, AJ,  standing at the door. I was floored. They had JUST moved in that same week! And we asked him if they went to church. "yeah, we used to go to the mormon church." I knew it was NOT a coincidence. His mom wasn't home so we tried back again this week. When his mom, Jessica, answered, she was not very warm. We stood on her doorstep and politely asked her a few questions about why she stopped coming. Then she let us in and we stood in her front entryway talking a little more. Her heart was softening and she said, "If you MAYBE wanted to stop by-but I'm not promising anything! And I need some time-but if you maybe were to stop by you could come on a Saturday." And then we asked her if she had a Book of Mormon and she let us give her one and then she said, "And so if you WERE to stop by on a Saturday in a FEW weeks from now, you could mark up some scriptures for us to read and give us a list or something." and then she said, "do you want to sit down?" Her heart had softened SO much. ALL in a matter of minutes. So we shared Helaman 5:12 and talked a lot about how building her foundation in Christ will bless her family. She loved it. And then we asked if there was anything we could do for her family and she said, "well, AJ needs a tutor for school. could you help with that?" And we were like HECK yes! And so she said, "well if you were to find a tutor, you could stop by earlier than Saturday, we'll be home after 7pm" HAH! So God is good. We asked a sweet sister in our branch to help and she is more than willing! I am excited for Sister Walton to bring this family back to the gospel! 

THEN another day we were trying a family in a trailer park but they weren't home. But the Spirit nudged me strongly to stay. So we prayed to know which side of the park we should knock. It was clear. Go Right! So we got out of our car and walked right and THERE was a little mom with her baby chamaca girl! A new Hispanic family! Like, prayers answered. Crazy! So Chayla let us in and we pulled out the Book of Mormon and showed her the pictures and explained how it would help her family come closer to Christ and she said, "how can I get one of these books?" YAY! And she said, "my husband only speaks Spanish. your church is in spanish?" HECK yes it is! She was loving the whole message. It was amazing. 

I'm so grateful the work is moving along and that Sister Walton still has her whole mission FULL of miracles ahead of her. I'm going to be with Sister Taylor, Hannah's old roommate. I'm really grateful because I needed a little change so that I'll stay totally focused to the end. Because I was really not expecting it I didn't even really say goodbye to a lot of people but it's better that way. God knows my heart. And I love Him for that.

I finished the Book of Mormon this week. This was the BEST transfer reading it so quickly. Oh, I love that book! I love the Gospel. Watching Miguel and Ramon get baptized was one of the highlights of my mission. This is TRUE! 

I love y'all! I will send some pics and hopefully videos in a bit!

Hermana Em

And now, my beloved brethren, for ye are my brethren, and ye ought to be beloved

To those I love with all my heart,

Sunshine and happy days! Springtime is the BEST. We went to the temple today. Which you know what that means: Miracle Monday! Once again, I have a testimony that miracles ALWAYS happen the day before the temple. Sister Sanchez and I are considering sharing this theory with President Mullen so we can go to the temple every transfer. Or every week...Shoot, I could use a miracle day like this once a week. 

But ok, ok. We do see miracles everyday. Even little things like people answering their door and letting us inside. But yesterday was topping the charts.

Melissa got baptized on Saturday which was so great and happy but that left our teaching pool pretty shallow. As in nobody. We didn't have any investigators in the Bowdish ward. So we've been praying pretty hard that we can just find SOMEBODY. In both English and Spanish truthfully cause we've been struggling. We went on exchanges last week. Did I tell you Sister Tippetts got transferred to an English ward here? SO happy to have her! And so she's the traveling sister up here and so we went on exchanges with them. I just love her so. Anyway, I'm giving a lot of back story just to tell you that on exchanges we walked a lot. The sisters only have a few miles to drive their car each day 'cause their area isn't very big so they walk a lot. The sun is shining so it feels great to be out talking to everyone. I walked more on my exchange than I have my whole mission. I was loving it! Of course, because we cover all Spanish speakers in the entire Valley, we are driving everywhere. We are constantly in the car. It can drive me crazy sometimes. So we decided yesterday that we'd park our car and walk more. Especially because we were trying potentials in our English area. Wouldn't you know that the day we decide to walk more it's ferociously windy and freeeezing!? But we walked anyway.

And we walked right past a garage sale that we would've zoomed past in our other circumstances. So we stopped to talk. The lady selling happened to be a less-active member and she wasn't too excited to talk but the guy buying came up to us. 

"Jehovah's Witnesses or Mormons?"

"Mormons"

"Ok. I'll listen. What do you want to tell me?"

"Do you have time right now??"

"Yeah, let's go to the park."

Thankfully the park was about ten steps away. We sat down at a picnic table and the first thing Dusty told us was that he had a 3 year old daughter who means everything to him. He hadn't been able to focus at work that day so he took a half hour for lunch. Then he stopped at the garage sale and he'd been there for about an hour just mulling around until we showed up. He knew God sent us to him so he decided to listen. We taught him a powerful restoration lesson and promised him the peace and blessings that come from the Book of Mormon. He gladly took a copy and nodded his head in agreement. It was all making sense. Then we invited him to be baptized. For May 25th.

"If I know this is true by then, I will be baptized."

He'll know it's true. Because it is. There is a real peace in the Book of Mormon. He will feel the truth of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ and he'll change his life. 

Just like that. 

And we met him at a garage sale that we only stopped at 'cause we were walking. 

God is amazing at orchestrating these things. I see His hand, and His love everyday. I'm so grateful to be here and to be His missionary. On top of that miracle, we had: some members invite us for dinner on Thursday to teach their friends, a less-active we've had the hardest time getting a hold of let us in for a lesson, and Gloria Cooper couldn't get enough during our Plan of Salvation lesson and prayed right there to know if it was true. It was a really great day.

Typically week 3 or 4 is the miracle week of the transfer but we're up to week 6 and I know it'll be full of good things. It may be because it's probably the last week Sister Sanchez and I will be together. I have no idea what'll happen. I have no idea what I want to happen either. I'm willing to go where God needs me. But also that means send all mail to the mission office until further notice!

Well, I love y'all! The work is good. It's tough but good. I love my mission more and more everyday. I love this place. I love President and Sister Mullen just so, so much. I know God is there. He loves us. He knows us. We matter to him.

Keep up the good work, y'all!

Love,

Hermana Em

When we turn outward, we give everything to God and to others.

Querida familia!

What a week it has been in the Washington Spokane mission. Seriously.

Melissa is getting baptized next Saturday so we've been meeting with her everyday. She is super excited and we are too. Her prayers are so faith filled and sincere. It's really sweet to be with her and teach her. 

We've been phonebook tracting this week which means we go to all the addresses of people with Hispanic sounding names. We haven't had a whole lot of luck but on Wednesday we knocked on a door to a family who turned out to be English speakers. We always try to knock all around the area because we know that even if we didn't find someone the first door, God has a reason for us to be in that area. And so the next door we knocked on was Talen M. We had just received a district training about being brief and bold and teaching the Restoration on the doorstep. So he opened the door and we started to testify. Almost instantly the light of Christ deep inside him recognized us as servants of the Lord. He taught about how Christ established his church and it was lost for a time, but today it has been brought back in it's fullness and glory. We showed him the Book of Mormon and he said, "Where do I get started? Where can I go to church?" He was almost in tears. He said he'd been praying for an answer and he felt like this was God's answer for him. We invited him to be baptized and he said, "You know I don't know but I really feel like yes, I would. This is such a clear answer for me." I felt so full and happy. He's not in our English area and so we gave him as a referral to the Elders but it was an answer to my prayers. That we are instruments in God's hands. WE are doing our best and following the spirit and being exactly where we need to be.

We've given away 5 other referrals just like that this week. It's been both rewarding and super tough. It shows us that we are in the right places, inviting and being bold. But it's a little disheartening because even though we are working hard and finding the elect, we aren't finding anyone in our area to teach. I sometimes worry that maybe our leaders won't see we are working hard because we haven't been having as many lessons but we are working. SO HARD. Probably more diligent than ever before. But then I remember that God knows. He sees our efforts and He is pleased with us. My Zone Leader, Elder Whiting asked us about why we were here. What's your purpose? We're here to become like our Father in Heaven. We want to be perfect like him. Then he said that Sister Mullen explained to him that becoming perfect means to "turn outward". From the inside out. God is perfect and He does everything for us, His children. When we turn outward, we give everything to God and to others. He told us that because we were learning to be selfless and give our prepared, elect people away as referrals, we are really learning to turn outward and be more like Christ.

It gave me a new perspective and I've actually been really grateful to meet so many prepared people and to help the work move forward in any way possible.

I know that every missionary has tough times and I know these tough times are building me. I really have learned so much about Christ and the Atonement these last few months here in the Valley.

I love this Gospel. I have really grown in my testimony lately. I know that Christ is my Savior and God is my loving Heavenly Father. I regret so much not opening my mouth more and sharing this message with everyone. We all need it. I am learning how much I need it most of all.

I love you! Be a missionary this week. Support the missionaries in your ward. Invite them over and always try to have referrals for them. Pray for people you know, so you can know how to share your testimony.

The work is good. I love this beautiful place. I want to live in rolling hills and lush farmland like this someday. I just love it so.

Hermana Em