September 19th, 2016
This week was a little bit of a rough week for me. Last Monday I hurt my like lower back? tailbone? I don't know, something down there, and it has been such an annoyance all week. I finally called our mission nurse and she told me some helpful things to do. I still follow the missionary schedule so it's not super bad. I just hope it passes soon, everything for me is just really uncomfortable right now. Sometimes painful but not too bad.
We are teaching Monique still, and I wish it was going a little better than it is but I am trusting the Lord's timing. We are trying our best to teach to her needs. We are so excited to teach a new person tonight, Mindy. We met her tracking last week and was really nice. There are a lot of good things in the works here, and all in Heavenly Father's time they will start happening as we try our best.
I had such a big tender mercy this week. Yesterday at church a girl walked in a few minutes before we started and sat alone. I immediately felt so strongly we needed to sit with her. It turns out Yvonne just graduated high school and moved into town. She has grown up with people from the church and even went to seminary. She had such a strong spirit about her, we instantly connected and chatted like friends the rest of the day. She really wants to be a member and join the church. We were in the last hour of church and during the lesson she leaned over and said remind me I have to ask you something. At the end of the lesson she asked us, "What does it take to be baptized?". She has such a strong testimony already and she hasn't even met with missionaries yet. So as it also turns out though, she is supposed to go to the ward that meets after us so the elders are going to teach her from that ward. We were both still excited that we went to church at the same building and could still chat. The experience was a faith builder to me. It reminded my very forgetful, human heart that there are people here who are ready to experience the Gospel just like Yvonne. And just like the Souza's and Kelly and Ashley and so many many more.
I feel like lately I have been getting a whole new dose of culture. Just to name a few, we are meeting this week with a Japanese couple who are Buddhist for an authentic Japan lunch (they speak Japanese with sister kitahara so I just sit there and smile and pick out the very few words I do know), and we have gotten to be very close with this Indian lady in the area. She is Hindu. We call her our Indian mum, she always takes care of us and is so sweet. She tells me where to get all the good vegetarian food. And this week we got to meet up with one of the inactive sisters I was close to when I served here a year ago, and we had little Tunisian treats and drinks. Through all of it I have been even more understanding how every culture and every religion has so many elements of truth in it. It reminded me of one of my favorite verses in the Book of Mormon. It is in 2 Nephi 29:7-11. Verse 7 says " Know ye not that there are more nations than one? Know ye not that I, the Lord your God, have created all men, and that I remember those who are upon the isles of the sea; and that I rule in the heavens above and in theearth beneath; and I bring forth my word unto the children of men, yea, even upon all the nations of the earth? ". I know Heavenly Father loves each of us no matter what culture or religion. I am grateful to be apart of the living church of Christ where we accept all truth everywhere it is found. The more we see the truth and good others already have, the more we can offer to build on those truths with our knowledge of the Restoration.
all my love,
sister Neeley
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