When it rains, it pours...but when it rains, the sun shines brighter :)

Hello hello,

 

So, you might be wondering why I'm emailing a day late. Very simple, actually, we spent most of our P-day in Antwerpen, waiting for my companion to get stitches because of an incident while playing sports. Don't worry, she's all right, doesn't have much pain, and is patched up very nicely. In fact, we had a miracle last night because of it. But I'll say more about that later.

 

This week was wet. Very very wet. Pours is an accurate description of the weather. But then it cleared up very nicely and we finished it off with some very cool miracles.

I'll start with one of the biggest miracles--8 nonmembers at church, 6 of them being our investigators! That was an amazing experience. Sometimes it takes some time (and patience), but it feels like all our hard work (and the hard work of the missionaries before us) is finally paying off. That is the most investigators I have ever had in sacrament meeting. The Lord truly is the one in control of this work.

 

Other miracle: One of our investigators is doing really well and wants to be baptized! She even has a date in her head, just isn't yet ready to say what it is. We went through the baptismal interview questions with her briefly to let her know what all we'll have to talk about in the next few weeks and from her responses she is very ready. We really love her a lot.

Another personal miracle for me was going to the stake barbeque on Saturday. I saw several of the ward members from Heerlen again and that was really cool, especially because they still remembered me. It's been a long time, so it was really neat to see them all again and catch up a little bit. Also, one of them grew up in our branch boundaries and told us to go visit his parents, who aren't coming to church but he says that they're pretty positive.

I know that the Lord protects us and also that He can turn any bad thing into a good thing (see 2 Nephi 2:2: "Thou knowest the greatness of God; and he shall consecrate thine afflictions for thy gain"). Because of what happened with Sister R., we were in the right place at the right time to meet this really cool Bulgarian girl who we now have an appointment with. Also, in everyday life there are many things that happen that we don't wish for or expect, but that can be great learning and growth opportunities and chances to grow closer to our Heavenly Father.

I know that the gospel is true and that it is the only way to true and enduring happiness. I am so grateful for the many blessings Heavely Father has given me.

 

I love you all and hope you have a wonderful week!

Love,
Zuster Stevens