Friends and Family!

This has been a good week... I realized in my emails I don't give to many details of what is really going on here.. I really like to share what I learn each week... but here are some events that take place in my week!

Every week we do volunteer work at a place called the Pitman Manor. It is a Care Home, I have met so many wonderful people there and I look forward to visiting with them each week. I met a really sweet lady named Ruth, she and I have a sweet bond. She used to sew all the time and loves to share with us her photo album of all her creations! It keeps me happy being able to talk about sewing to someone who understand the addiction! :) I miss my sewing machines!

We get to visit with sweet old women in our ward. There is another special friend that I have made here her name is Sister Streeter! She is a fantastic lady! Always so dressed up and welcoming to the missionaries... I've adopted her as another Grandmother! We check on her often to make sure she is doing alright.

I had an experience yesterday while we were walking down Broadway in Pitman. It is a cute street in the center of Pitman that has lots of cute store fronts.. We were just walking through talking to people, when we met this boy named Dale... He is 16 years old and we were able to talk to him about the wonderful Gospel of Jesus Christ. It is such a good feeling when you get to introduce people to the great blessings that come from learning of the church. We also got to talk to 2 other guys about God. We asked them if they believed in God... Their answer made me really sad... they said.."We are confused about that." We were able to share with them that there is a God who loves us all. We were able to give them the church website.. www.mormon.org I really love being able to invite people. That is all we are here to do... Invite.. It is a blessing and a privilege to be here. I am blessed.

Each week is different and wonderful... I am learning so much about myself...

Everyday I think about my wonderful friends in Africa that say: "You can manage" It is a good reminder that anything is possible!

The weeks Keep on Passing...

It amazes me how fast Wednesdays come... This week has been a great week.. although, every week is good. I realized the times in my life when I felt like things weren't going well, it was only because I failed to see the Lords hand in the experiences that I was having. I have made a goal from the beginning of my mission to write down the "Miracles" in my life that I am able to witness... It is amazing when you look for them how they are so visible. I am really blessed to be serving with a sister.. Sister Rowe, who is so great. She has so much faith, and is very good as seeing the way the Lord directs our days here in New Jersey. We have had a wonderful week, we were very blessed to be able to attend a Zone Conference and also Stake Conference. I love the members out here. They are all so wonderful. The people here are strong and dedicated. During Stake Conference there were many messages shared about the family. It just shows me after listening to General Conference and now the wonderful Stake Conference how important the family really is, how much growth and knowledge we can gain from those around us in our homes. They also shared about being close to the Spirit. It is so important to be able to be in tune with the Spirit and to try and learn and align our will, with that of our Heavenly Father. It is a lifetime goal, and process. I am so grateful to be alive, to be able to continue to work on that! And so it goes... on and on... :)

Blessed

I don't have much time this week.. but I did want to share an experience I had this week!

I was so very blessed to be able to talk with my family this past Sunday.. Mother's Day! In our Sacrament meeting they talked all about Mothers. It made me really think about how much I love my own mom. I love her for so many reasons.. but a few of them are:

:For teaching me to learn and grow in the Gospel

:For being so selfless

:For being patient and kind always

:For helping me learn and grow to love sewing, and quilting

:For being the kind of mother to her children that I hope to be to my children someday!

I love my Mom!

Aside from the wonderful Sacrament meeting I was able to attend I was also privileged to hear from an Apostle of the Lord, Elder Jeffery R. Holland.

What an amazing experience that was. As I stood when he walked into the room, I was overwhelmed, the spirit was so strong. I felt so much love from him and his wonderful wife. I learned so much from his and his wife's beautiful messages, but I just wanted to share my thoughts on one thing he said.

He was talking about the Miracles that Christ performed while he was on the earth, healing the sick, raising the dead, giving sight to those who were blind. Those acts that he performed were living proof that Jesus Christ truly was The Son of The Living God. Miracles continue to happen in this life, from our Savior Jesus Christ! Nothing has changed from the time Christ was giving sight to those who were blind, to now. Jesus Christ and God are still continuing to run this Gospel. "Miracles have not ceased. "It is ALWAYS bigger, it ALWAYS gets better, we get more then we dreamed of."

Everyday I get to see the small Miracles of our Savior Jesus Christ. I hope that you all take the time to try to recognize those things, for they are the ties that can connect us more fully to our Heavenly Father and his Son Jesus Christ.

Pictures of Experiences...

Experiences...

I have had so many experiences this week that have helped me realize that I have really been prepared to be here on this mission. I think life is always going to be about learning. Learning from our mistakes, learning from our strengths, learning from our experiences and opportunites.

This week, I have learned new things, relearned old things, and it has made me grateful for the opportunity that each and everyone of us have to LEARN!

We had a lesson on Sunday about the Gift of the Holy Ghost (what a special gift). We watched a little video (I think it was a Morman message on youtube) about a little boy in the Dominican Republic how he was staying at a shelter with a couple that took in children to try and help them so they didn't have to live on the streets. These people were trying to make a difference in the lives of people around them. The church found out about this situation and sent help, clothing, food, a few toys. This boy talked about how he felt when he was able to have his own brand new clothing. As I was thinking about this, we started discussing gifts. How we sometimes recieve gifts that we appreciate at the moment and then take it for granted. We are always wanting something bigger and better. I have often thought about those kids in Africa that I met last summer and how they have influenced my life. Tears rolled down my checks when I thought of how the boy in the video must have taken care of the things that he received, he must have always been grateful for the few things that he was able to gain that day.

How many time in our lives do we want more than we really need and forget what we already have?

What I am doing here is helping me learn and grow each day. It is helping me appreciate the things that I have in my life, I am trying to not take them for granted. The simple thing I am trying to ask people here to do is to learn, to learn about the Book of Mormon. It is a powerful book, and a beautiful GIFT that our Heavenly Father has blessed us with.

I'm grateful to be here to be able to share this gift with others.