Tuesday, May 29, 2018

A letter from my missionary daughter in California



Hello everyone!!

We have had a busy week! And come to think of it, I don't think there's been a week that we haven't been busy, which is great. Now when it comes to remembering all the things we've done this week, that's a different story! We had transfers, and found out that both of us (Sister Peterson and I) are staying in Dana Point!! We are so excited to have another six weeks together, this area is really cool and there is so much work to be done. And we are both really musical, so we love to make music together! 
We have dinner with members almost every night, which gives us a great chance to get to know the people here and this week we had dinner with a family by the last name of Brown. They're a couple in their 50s that manage medical offices and can pretty much work from home but also travel whenever they want. They're pretty well off, financially, but they have a modest house and they're such kind and genuine people. They asked us about our families and shared their stories about when they joined the church, which are always my favorite stories to hear! Brother Brown said that he joined when he was 14 and living in Chicago on the Southside. His parents had passed away and so he went to live with his aunt, but he remembered that the Mormon missionaries used to visit his mom before she passed away. His mom was too sick to be baptized before she passed away, but she wanted it very much. .  And he also remembered that his dad would greet the missionaries at the door with a shot gun, but they kept coming back ! I was really taken aback by that and I thought to myself "Would I got back to a house where someone had pointed a gun at me?..." I mean, I'd like to think that the answer would be yes if God was the one telling me to do it, but that takes an insane amount of courage and faith. But I think the reason those missionaries kept visiting them is because they knew one day Brother Brown would accept the gospel, and he did! And so did his sister. And His father eventually stopped pointing a gun at the missionaries when they would come over. But for Brother Brown, joining the church was about becoming part of a family, not so much about making a promise to follow Jesus Christ and our Heavenly Father. And everyone has a different story about how they came to know the church was true, because we are all different. But that's the wonderful thing about the gospel, there's something for everyone! No matter who you are,  or where you've been; it's all about knowing where we're going, returning to our Father. 
We had so many great things happen this week with less active members and recent converts that we've been working with! There was one day that we were thinking of people to visit and Connie Riddle came to mind. She is a returning less-active member who is getting ready to get married and move in with her soon to be husband. She had been packing up some things in her apartment and had thought about asking someone for help,  so she said a quick prayer. And the next thing she knew, we were on her doorstep offering to help! I love it when we are able to be an answer to someone's prayers, it's awesome to be God's hands :) 
Thank you all for what you do for your families and friends and the good that you do in your communities! Keep it up! I love you all, have a great week!

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