March 2, 2013

G'dayyy!

Well...we're alive. It has been POURING all week! Flash floods, etc. but the work continues on. Sister Nauta and I actually quite enjoyed working in the rain, people felt a little sorry for us so they were more likely to listen :)  We had some good laughs: We went up to a door and before we could even finish saying hello, the older man yelled from his couch, "Not a chance!" ......"Alright sir, have a great day." haha and as we were walking away we heard his wife say, "who was that?"  He replied, "The Jehovah's Witnesses."  We were tempted to turn around and correct him but...we didn't.

A little miracle I'd like to share this week:  We were wandering around one of our areas in the rain and decided to stop and visit a less active/active family.  We came in and had a seat, shared a spiritual message and talked about the work going on in the area.  We then asked Brother ______ if he had a referral for us. He got a little teary and then shared a missionary experience he had earlier in the week. He had met a woman on the bus and talked to her about the gospel.  Then he told her about missionaries, and invited her to come for dinner soon to hear about the gospel from us and his family. She accepted and gave him her address, etc. Brother ______ said he was just thinking about this experience, as well as the missionaries, when we knocked on his door. He said he'd been praying for weeks for a missionary opportunity and he knows this is the answer he has been waiting for. Of course, we couldn't be any happier, a referral!  Someone we can teach!  We're very excited and yesterday he bore powerful testimony of missionary work and finding people to teach. We're hoping that will get the ward excited and many more referrals will start to come in :)

We also had our mission tour this week on Thursday with special guest Elder Hamula from the Quorum of the Seventy! He's amazing to say the least. I'll share with you some of the things I took away from our meeting. He means business, that's for sure.

Based off of the talk Elder Holland gave, he talked about our mission, or our life being like a game. In sports, there are lines that keep us "in bounds" and as long as we stay within those lines, we can be successful, we can score points, etc. Just like there are rules in a game, there are commandments in life, and when we live those commandments we know we can receive blessings, we can experience great happiness and joy.  But if we step outside those boundaries, we are then giving the ball over to the other team. Who is the other team? The adversary. We are on the field and we are expected to play the best we know how, using the abilities and talents that we each posses. We are to fully engage ourselves in the game.  How many times will you hear a coach say, "give it 110%"?  Obviously, when you are in a game, the goal is to win, and you're expected to play hard in order to win. We are to give this life our all, to fully engage ourselves in the gospel, in the teachings of Christ. We can't expect to win, or to have that happiness and promised blessings if we are giving it half our efforts. In sports, there aren't SOME rules that don't apply at different circumstances depending on our mood, just like there aren't commandments that are less significant than others.

Also, what is grace? Grace is the power to be and to become what you cannot do on your own. Disobedience is a sense of pride, it is by humbleness that the Lord takes our weaknesses and turns them into strengths. When you are humble and have done all that you can do, that is when you receive grace. Obedience is all about ATTITUDE! We know that even after we have tried the best we can, we won't be perfect. However, Christ was and IS perfect, and He already suffered for our inadequacies, He promised to make up the difference after we've done all we can.

I could go on and on, I learned so much from this conference.  I'm continually reminded of my imperfections but I am so grateful to know the Savior and for his Atonement and sacrifice. Each day I'm striving to become a better missionary and a better disciple of Christ. Our time here is so short and so crucial. I'm grateful to be a part of this work, and continue to be a part of it even when I have to take off the badge. I love you all, I hope you are reading from the Book of Mormon.  This week will be Alma Chapter 3-11. Let Alma be an example to all of us, I know as I read all I can think is..."well........I've got a long ways to go" haha...have a great week! LOVE YOU!!!

Sister Raitt