Hello Hello!!!
How much I love you all!!!!!! Miss you all tons and love getting updates always; THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!
Can't believe it, but I hit my one year mark. I only have 6 months left!!!! Is that enough time??? Probably not. I'm just glad I'm loving it and that we're finding so much success! People are prepared. We just have to find them:)
One big thing I have learned in the mission is that the harder I work, the more miracles I see. It's so TRUE! Read Ether 12. Faith comes before the miracles. And part of faith is work. Faith without works is dead. When Heavenly Father knows we will share the gospel with everyone we come in contact with, He will guide the elect right to us! Or us right to them! It's amazing! The mission is amazing. What I would have done in life without this experience I do not know. Probably would've just withered away being an unproductive little soul with absolutely no influence on the world. Just living and breathing. Hahaha, that's a bit extreme:) But my point has been made. I love the mission.
Many miracles have been seen this week. We have a family FINALLY getting married so that they can all be baptized. We have 4 baptisms of a return less-active's children this saturday, woohoo!!!!! The branch is strengthening itself and callings are starting to be carried out, activities are being planned, meetings with auxillary are being held. I can't wait for the day when I hear that Catbalogan actually becomes a ward. In this area, more than any other area, I have tried to magnify my love of planning activities, and we have had AMAZING results! This is because activities weren't a regular thing before. Sister Healey and I have taken it head on, trying to build up the branch. We've done 3 pretty big activities so far; one of them was just for the relief society. They had never had anything like it and they loved it! Even just getting an invitation for the activity the week before lit up these sweet nanays haha. This last week, we had one big branch activity and a bunch brought friends! New investigators! Hehehe I'm so happy I can just hardly even contain myself.
One miracle I witnessed this week seemed as if it came directly from the New Testament. I've never witnessed anything like this before. One family we have been teaching - they are golden! Pretty much sitting in the baptismal font haha - called us this week asking if we could bring the Elders to give a blessing on their grandma. The lola (grandma) has already been in pretty bad condition for the last couple of years - not being able to talk or move well - because she had a stroke. As of recently she caught pneumonia, and when we went in to see her, she was lying on the floor of her house, body shaking, one eye closed shut, the other twitching, and I she was struggling to breathe, her body heaving up and down. We called the Elders and while we waited, taught them about Priesthood blessings. The Elders finally came over and game this poor lola a desperately needed blessing. Okay, I have a huge testimony of priesthood blessings; always have believed that they help in some way as long as faith is there and the desired outcome is ultimately the Father's will. But my testimony has greatly been strengthened after that experience. Immediately after the blessing, the lola was still. Her breathing was completely normal. Both eyes were open just looking around. The result was instantaneous. Her body and brain are still not all there because of the stroke a couple years ago, but considering, she was moving fairly easily, readjusting the blanket on her and just kind of looking at us as we introduced ourselves and smiled at her. The family around her was just kind of in shock. And THEN! The Elders get up to leave and say, "Okay we're gonna go now Nay", and she managed an, "Oo", which means "yes". She spoke! Her family was dumbfounded. She hasn't been able to speak in a long time.
Amazing amazing. Thank you parents for raising me in this gospel. I'm SO grateful. In a couple weeks is GENERAL CONFERENCE. I'm more excited than I've ever been. I invite you all to start preparing now. Prepare spiritually. Try to listen to conference with a question or concern in your heart. It's what our leaders suggest of us to that we are better able to receive personal revelation.
Love you all! Hug each other for me:)
Sister Russon
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