Transfer #6

Transfer calls came last night and another six weeks has come and
gone. Sister Byrne and I are staying here together in Loomis! No
changes there. We heard today that her visa should be arriving within
the next couple of weeks, which is bittersweet. Even if her visa comes
next week, she will have to wait six weeks until the end of the
transfer to go to Brazil, just so they don't have to move everyone
around in the middle of a transfer. so we get to keep her here until
the beginning of March, at least!



Our investigator, Gerald, helped brother Stoddard, our ward mission
leader, give the lesson in Sunday school yesterday. It was awesome! He
prepared everything himself and typed up this paper with questions and
scriptures. They talked on the Millennium and he did a great job!
Gerald is so close...but he is just patiently waiting for an answer to
his prayers. He has been meeting with the sisters for about 2 years
now and wants to finish the Book of Mormon three times before he
really believes it. Things are starting to click though. His wife died
three years ago and he really wants to have peace in knowing where she
is. He's just got to develop some faith. It's all about "hoping" with
Gerald, which is a good start in the right direction.



So I don't know if you all remember me telling you about Troy and
Nicole, the young couple who were expecting a baby...? Well they have
been separated the last couple of months and moved back in with their
parents in Rocklin and Roseville, so we haven't had contact with them
since about November. The other day though, I got a message on
Facebook from Troy asking if we could call him to talk. We called him
the next day and he is really stressing out because a lot of craziness
is happening and he has to make a lot of big decisions. Long story
short, Nicole and him separated, he found out that the baby isn't
actually his, and now Nicole wants a divorce. Drama. He called us
seeking wisdom and answers and I gave him the best I could. We invited
him to our church open house last night and he actually came! It
wasn't what he was expecting, but he was able to have a meeting with
our Bishop and received a lot of good advice and direction. It
definitely was not a coincidence that this all happened and even
though he is in Roseville, we are hoping that he will keep in touch.
It was amazing how his demeanor changed within the hour that he got to
the church, from when he left. The spirit was so strong there last
night and the message of our Saviors healing was directed right at
him. It was perfect.



Patsie, the cute 80 year old woman that we teach, made the decision
that she WILL read the Book of Mormon and give it a chance. She has
been meeting with the sisters since last summer, but is quite the busy
body. For example, she's on a cruise to Belize this week learning how
to airbrush and she is an amazing wood carver and president of the
local wood carving club. She keeps herself goin. Patsie has a lot of
faith and has a hard time with some of the doctrine we teach her.
Which is understanding, because I am sure that after being taught one
thing for 80 years, opening up and accepting new (true) doctrine would
be hard. We had a lesson with her on Wednesday and as I was sitting
there trying to think of what to say, I realized that the reason she
has a problem with all of these things that are so simples nd make
sense, is because she hasn't read the Book of Mormon. If the Book of
Mormon is true, then that means all the doctrine and teachings of
Christs gospel and all the modern day revelation we have, is true
also. She has been hesitant to start the Book of Mormon because she
thinks it may contradict the bible, but finally after boldly telling
her my thoughts, she says that she will definitely start reading the
BOM when she finishes the New Testament...which will be soon. Thank
goodness! She has come to church twice and really feels comfortable
there, plus she makes friends with everyone.

We didn't have a lot planned for Saturday, so we decided to take the
bikes out for a spin. Pretty sure we rode about 20 miles mostly
uphill...so that was a good idea...As we rode down Auburn Folsom road,
which is super sketchy and basically a highway, I saw this random
driveway. I rode past it and then had this feeling like we should go
back. We got off our bikes and walked them back up the hill to this
driveway. It was a long, twisted driveway that led back to this super
cute house. We walked up the steps and this middle age man named Pete
came out before we even got to the door. He was actually super
friendly to us and told us that he used to work with a Mormon guy.
Then he told us that he knew the Perez family really well (the stake
president) and the Latham family (our bishop). Small world. His
daughter is best friends with the Latham and Perez girls and has even
gone up to girls camp for the past six years with them. I guess his
daughter has even told them that she would join the Mormon church once
she moves out of the house. It was a very interesting coincidence and
even though he didn't set up a return appointment with us, we left him
with a Book of Mormon (that people don't usually accept) and planted a
seed! Follow the promptings of the spirit! Trust in The Lord!

This week I spent a lot of time in the doctors office due to some
stomach issues. They ran some tests and will hear back tomorrow what
the results are. Don't be worried people, I'll be fine. Being sick
this week has really helped me realize one important thing, the
priesthood ROCKS. I don't know why, but I was putting off getting a
priesthood blessing because I didn't really want to make it a big
deal. But on Friday night I finally agreed to get a priesthood
blessing and I am  so thankful I did so. I believe that Satan knows
the power the priesthood can have in our lives, so he makes us feel
like we can do it on our own and that we would be burdening a
priesthood holder by asking them for a blessing. DONT BELIEVE HIM. The
priesthood is there and meant to be used. We can't do it on our own.
We need Gods help. He knows best. He can tell us exactly what we need
through a blessing from a worthy priesthood holder. Allow these
priesthood holders to use this divine blessing. It's amazing!

Love you all! Have a good week! Focus on the Savior. Face the trials.
Grow stronger. Pray always. Stay strong, yo.