The Book Of Mormon Illuminates Lives

Week 49, Transfer 7
Area: Yuba City (Tierra Buena Branch)
Compañera: Hermana Park

TRANSFER NEWS CAME! I'm leaving Yuba and going to Auburn with Hermana Griffin! It's where I was supposed to be trained when I started my mission, but last-minute impressions sent me to Corning and two seasoned hermanas to Auburn, where the work progressed like crazy. They opened the area that transfer and are trying to start a branch! I'm so excited to be there! Our area in Yuba is getting whitewashed, though, but don't fear, Hermana Park will still be near! She's going to Lincoln, and we'll be in the same district there.

Highlights:

More pouring rain this week, but the work goes on!

COOL NEW PEOPLE FOUND! Lilian, Christian, Juan, and Maria!

Alisa's baptism. Not into our ward, but Alisa is incredible. Our district leader and his companion received a social media referral for her at the end of last transfer. After going through a hard time, she remembered how wonderful meeting with missionaries 20 years ago was and sent in a self-referral. They were impressed to bring a certain member couple from their ward, and on her second lesson, she was put on date to be baptized. She was baptized a few weeks later (this week!). One of the elders reminded her so much of her brother, who died when she was 15. Come to find out, his first name, his companion's middle name, and the name of the husband of the couple who had been fellowshipping her were all the SAME name as her brother. That elder had been wondering why he was in this mission after a reassignment. He didn't have to wonder after Alisa asked him to baptize her because he reminded her of her brother. GOD IS IN THE DETAILS!

Maria was a miracle! The other hermanas knocked on her door the day before we did and talked to her and her kids, but no one was super interested. They gave her an English class flyer and left. We knocked on her BACK door by accident the next day, and Maria was right by the door. We asked if she had a favorite Bible verse. She said she read one yesterday and invited us in for her to read it. The verse she read was in Matthew 6, where the Lord says not to say vain repetitions in prayers and gives the Lord's Prayer. She loved it. She said she's Catholic and proceeded to say she doesn't believe in some core Catholic beliefs. We asked if she'd heard of the Book of Mormon. She hadn't, but when we said it's another testament of Jesus Christ to help us learn more about Him, she got SO excited and asked where she could get one. We gave her a free copy then and there, and the joy in her eyes was something I'll never forget. She gave us her number unprovoked so we could come back and talk about it with her another day. She then asked us what we think about worshipping images and how she doesn't agree with that and only prays to and worships God. Elect or elect?

We went to the temple this week! We go once a transfer, and since we went at the very beginning of last transfer and the very end of this transfer, it had been almost 12 weeks since we'd been to a session in the temple to do proxy work. It was so, so needed. The peace inside the temple transcends all else—the most serene of rivers, the prettiest of mountains, and the calmest of beaches. It heals your soul, and as one of my good friends, Sister Kraczek, describes, "When you enter the temple, you hang up your armor to get repaired, cleaned, and shined before putting it back on to go back out into the battles of the world."

If you have the chance to go inside the temple this week, take it and go. Thousands, countless people on both sides of the veil will thank you and rejoice. If you even have the chance to simply stand on the temple grounds outside, or even drive past one intentionally or simply sit in the parking lot, there is power in your efforts.

Keep being awesome! God loves you so much more than you can ever imagine, and I love and am so proud of you too!
Hermana Ellis

Fotos:
https://photos.app.goo.gl/UtFZf4erpztBvg7x5

Notable Quotes:
Hna Ellis: "Wait, you're Catholic? And you read your Bible yesterday?"

Elder Jensen to Elder Belshaw: "You're a vet seasoner; you can't be washing the wok with soap."













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