Aloha!
I don't really remember what we did
this week....it seems like every week just smears together and I have all these
great things to share but I don't know if I already shared them or not..... But
I am journaling every day and in December we can read through a more detailed
overview of my mission.
We are working with some part member
families. In both cases it is the wife who isnt a member. Both are doing well.
one of them has been living the word of wisdom (although her husband, who is a
member but not enjoying the blessings of the gospel fully, is not) and she told
us that she has been doing really well! She told us that her husband is even
supporting her. she said with out thinking, she asked to try his hard lemonade
and right before she took a sip, her drunk husband hit the glass out of her
hands and shouted "you can't drink that!!!" so he spilled the
lemonade all over her! gotta love the spousal
support:)
It sounds like sis Oh will go back
to the VC and I'll stay here. I am kinda excited....but kinda ready to have a
new area. we have knocked on like every door in this town......I feel like
belle in the beauty and the beast singing "there goes the baker with his
tray like always- the same old bread and rolls to sell. every morning just the
same since the morning that we came to this poor provincial town" etc...
but im singing "there goes the
hobo with his dog like always.... and there goes jim our stalker
friend..." haha. but I know that if I stay it is for a reason and it is
just up to me to find out what that reason is. Heavenly Father puts all of His
missionaries where they need to be!
We got to go to the temple this
week!! yay temple trip Tuesday!! and something really special was that
president and sister warner came to our session! it was so great to see them
again! now we are emailing in the library at BYU Hawaii campus, then we will go
to the PCC again! woo hoo! oh and for the first time we got to have a tour of
the visitors center!! President wants us to know what is going on in there so
we can recommend people to come and see from experience! It was so great! I
loved the family video! we'll have to watch it when we go to Hawaii together:)
Probably the happiest part of the
week was our friend A. He is working to come back to the church. he's been less
active for most of his youth/young adulthood. so he is the older end of YSA now
so we work with him and the YSA elders work with him. this week he told us that
he had been praying morning and night like the elders invited him to do and he
had been focusing on being grateful, like we invited him to do (after reading
pres. utchdorf's talk). He said that he felt so much happier!!!! and he met
with his bishop and is doing all the right things to get back on track!!! we are
so happy for him!!!!there is so much joy in helping someone work towards the
the temple! that's really all that we do as missionaries. sometimes it seems
like we are trying to help people to work towards baptism.....but the reason
that we even care about that is because we want to be baptized to eventually go to the temple!
and we need to go to the temple to make those promises to God and to learn and
to receive all of the blessings that He has in store for us!!
it is so important!!!
One of our little blessings this
week was the chocolate chip cookie miracle:
siter Oh and I had one of those days
that just felt kind of unsuccessful and
we were talking about who was having us over for dinner tonight and we said
"you know what would be really nice? a salad....and a cheesy pasta.... and
bread" just getting fancy with our wishes...then in my head I thought
"and chocolate chip cookies!!!" I just laughed to myself and thought "I
know that Heavenly Father loves us .....I don't need to be so selfish and picky
in how I want Him to bless us. let's not be childish" so I just offered a
silent prayer of gratitude to Heavenly Father for all that He has blessed us
with. So then we went to dinner and guess what they were serving? okay don't
guess, I'll just tell you- salad and pasta with cheese and bread and.....drum
roll please.....chocolate chip cookies!!! And I know that it seems like such a
silly little thing, but it was Heavenly Father's way of telling us that He was
so aware of us , and even our simple wants and wishes.
We are His precious children! He
knows that things we hope for (big and small). and He love us! Tell everyone
that!!!! That is what missionary work is- telling people of God's love. He
loves all of His children so much and He wants us all to have joy and to one
day be able to return and live with Him.
I am so grateful that He always
gives us little miracles and reminders of His love. Keep an eye out for the
little miracles He will give to you today, and everyday. and let us always
remember to thank Him too.
aloha nui loa!
-Sister Hodgson
