Latter-Day Glory Comes Forth, and Miracles Happen

Sorry Famsie!

I have to learn to be a faster writer! I'll try by bestest to jot down some things real quick :D

Last week (was it?) at our Elder Cook Mission Conf. one of my fellow MTC buds, Sister Miller, asked if I seen any miracles yet. "Every day," was my reply, surprising even me. I think of what Elder Holland said in his phenomenal talk in October. "Believe in miracles. I have seen so many of them come when every other indication would say that hope was lost. Hope is never lost." (Ha, I copy and pasted that from Lds.org so it looks a wee odd)
On Tuesday I had exchanges for the first time, meaning that my companion was switched out, and spent my evening and much of the next day (24 hours) with Sister Lewis, a Sister Training Leader. it was such a learning experience. Especially, to have the thought confirmed, that all missionaries can all do the same work using their own personalities, and their own individual testimonies. We are called here for a specific reason, each incredible moment we experience is because of God's hand in our lives! We bonded over our love (obsession?) with Cookie Butter, and I lamented my lack of it. (WE MAY GO TO TRADERS JOE THIS AFTERNOON! I CANNOT EXPRESS WHAT THAT WOULD MEAN TO ME.) And hey, guess what? we're related, Sister Lewis and I, through Great-grandpa John Lambert! What are the chances? Plus that we would be talking about our ancestry? Plus that we were able to look over her pedigree chart and figure out the connection..? Speaking of which I still need to print mine :)

That night an appointment we had fell through, as often happens, and so we were at the point, as many missionaries are where we look at each other in a "what now?" fashion, say a prayer together (often in public), and then we go and do. This time was like the rest, Sister Lewis looked up from the prayer and I heard someone nearby walking their dog, I hadn't even seen them yet, "That person, we're going to talk to him." 

AND YOU WILL NEVER BELIEVE IT. Okay probs you will because this is the Lord's work. But that man was T. Robinsen (abbreviating 'cause I'm super nice respecter of privacy); an in-active mormon, baptized maybe three years earlier. He stopped coming to church because he didn't think anyone cared if he was there or not, I don't think he thought God cared. We testified to him, let me tell you, that God sure cared. That we, just a few minutes ago, asked our Heavenly Father to lead us to who we were meant to, and there we were. That our Heavenly Father loves him and that as he is faithful, he will do a great work. It was a miracle, right?! I was so stoked. I think you can tell. I immediately said a prayer a gratitude following that. We are meeting with him tonight. :D Elder Oliver in our ward remarked yesterday that "aren't you so gung-ho (he might not have used that word) on missionary work...and T. Robinsen." I've told that story a few times now, but that's how it goes as a missionary! I have many more similar experiences that I won't share as time doesn't permit, but this is truly God's work! and we are, like Nephi (2 Nephi 1:24) an instrument in his hands. :)

The next day we went to visit Sister Back and older recent convert. It was with her I think I shed actual tears for the first time during a lesson. Her testimony and personal experiences with the atonement; they're just so powerful. She said some things that I took out my planner to write down because they were so good. "You've got to be strong." "I was literally blind and now I see." (She had eye-surgery soon after her conversion to the church)." I can love Jesus all week, I can love Jesus every day, and I do. But the sacrament...you've got to put yourself there where he [Christ] was." (I AM so grateful for the Sacrament. Whew. Each week I am humbled just by the fact that I have the opportunity to partake in that ordinance.) The Spirit filled that little Condo as the rain poured outside. She expressed her desire to have more religious reminders in her home, I'm working on getting her a framed picture of the temple she can hang on her wall.

We had a Zone meeting, devotional dealio with our Mission President on Wed. as we were all meeting at the Hilliard building for interviews. Of course it was exactly what I needed to hear, and I'm sure what the rest of us needed, 'cause Mission Presidents know things like that. In our interview, I'm sure less than 10 minutes long, he remarked on my maturity and thanked me for preparing so well to be a missionary, what? How does he know these things (I mean I do know how) and why would he think that? Hahaha he also counselled me on how to be more teachable, because I had express wanting to be better at that, I thought you would love that parents. :D

Thanksgiving of course! Was Thursday! I didn't remember until the day of. Let me know how all y'alls was, and send pictures! Ours was just wonderful, one of the best in the books. We went to the Lambert's and ate off General Authority-china, and to our bestie-neighbor Jeneba's ( I did spell it wrong last week)  I'll see if I can attach some pics for you! (So your more likely to send some to moi?) Jk, my companion is sending them to ya Ma. :)

Friday, Sister Pace felt prompted to stop and talk to two men having a discussion in a random parking lot we had gone into to turn around. They were so kind to us, and (!!!) hey hey ended up being both high-up administrators of  the Seventh-Day Adventist Church, one coming from Indonesia, where he does missionary work and such, only there for the weekend. I was so stoked especially 'cause their both vegetarian, and we talked about the Word of Wisdom a bit ;) After conversing for awhile, at the suggestion of Haskel (spelling?) we prayed together before parting.

We had a Sister Training Meeting on Saturday, and it was just beautiful. What we focus on is what we call in the mission, "today, tomorrow, and forever" principles. President and Sister Craven truly are preparing us to be Holy and to become Celestial, not just good missionaries.  I know that through the atonement, and our love and gratitude for the Savior, we can be healed, and made complete. Also, the scripture their RM daughter, mother now, of one shared, Mosiah 28:3, hit me so hard; go read it! I think I cried there on that Hilliard pew. That's why I think I first desired to serve a mission, so many other reasons to have sprung about since then, but truly it's getting hard to me to bear that so many here in Charlotte don't have that knowledge of the truth, that there is indeed a loving Heavenly Father that will never let them down. Being a missionary can hurt a little sometimes, can't it?
Sunday (I'm just briefly touching on each) we had a member MTC during the 3rd hour, I love our ward buckets. All 6 of us missionaries stood in the front, and when Bro. Arias, our ward mission leader talked about us a bit and our importance in being full-time missionaries, I was like "oh yeah, I am one of those!" It was great. It is great, and also neat. (The story of these two adjectives is still to come.) Sister Bush came up afterwards and said her brother Wayne is in your ward?! I said I knew about Connor and Mckenna Bush because Sagie was so stoked they had the same nombres as our Waldorf friends.

I love you! This is indeed, "the Lord's kindgom once again established on the earth" (Introduction to the Book of Mormon)! I'm trying to think of a good "Will you..." commitment I can extend...hmmm..."Will you pray to develop a greater understanding and love for the Book of Mormon?", it really is my favoritest book! I feel so much joy as a missionary! "The Spirit of God like a fire is burning" within me, as "the Latter-day glory begins to come forth. (I sang this to myself as I fell asleep last night) Write me! xx

Sister Lambert