Dear family,
Well Hello!! How is life in Utah? Good I hope! Texas is wonderful! The weather is still great and it's actually been quite chilly the last couple of days!
So the area I am in is just plain Houston, but we cover Cypress and Katy (that's right Katie! my first area!) White Oak is just the name of the stake me and Sister Jones are over! I haven't been to the Houston Temple yet, but we get to go every transfer so I'll get to know it really well! I can't wait to go!
This week has been incredible! There have been some lows, but there is always a miracle every day to make up for the bad! It's amazing!
Tracting was rough this week, it seemed like no one was home, or they refused to answer the door. On Tuesday we knocked on door after door after door and no one answered. It was pretty discouraging, but me and Sister Jones knew that we must have been needed elsewhere. So we said a prayer and went to an apartment complex of someone who was a less active. We really felt we should be there and sadly when we knocked on her door... no answer. It was a little confusing, why did we think we should be there if she wasn't home? We got back in the car even more discouraged, and before we pulled away I noticed there was one apartment with the porch light on and I had the thought "we should go knock on that door" I stared at that porch light for a good minute and then I told Sister Jones what I felt and we marched over to the door and guess what... no answer! Bummer right? But we couldn't let that get us down so instead we marched to the next door and knocked and guess what? It was answered by this awesome guy named Kenny! He is an active member of his own church so he didn't hesitate to say yes when we asked if we could say a prayer with him. After our prayer we left him with some information about the Church! He was so kind. It was great because when I was saying the prayer he would say stuff like "oh yes" "Amen" and "lord please" it was so great! We thanked him for letting us pray with him and he said "When the Lord sends you angels you don't turn them away!" Too true Kenny, too true.
Even though the rest of our day seemed bad that one miracle made the whole day worth it.
Then there was Thursday, same thing. Door after door unanswered. It can be pretty frustrating, but then we unknowingly knocked on Jamie's door. She is a member of our ward but she has had a rough life like Sister Ruhlman. It is difficult for her because her husband is not a member and in talking with her she said she has no hope left that he'll ever join the church. You could see the sadness in her eyes. We got to talk to her for a long time, and me and Sister Jones knew that's where we needed to be. I think Jamie just needed a reminder of how much God loves her, and how he is aware of her. With all the knocking we did it was hard not to feel a bit useless, but then I think there was something I needed to learn from it. I also think that Jamie needed us there. I really believe the Lord led us to her that day. On Sunday we saw her at Church and she seemed so much happier. We are going to her house for dinner tonight! And guess who's coming with us? None other than Sister Ruhlman, my favorite gal in the whole world!
Now on to Sister Ruhlman, she is a dear. I just love her. We went to visit with her again this week. When she was married she was abused and so she longs for the kind of love she sees in others. She often talks to us about the kind of men we need to marry, she has the greatest advice haha. She says things like "don't marry a dummy like I did" only she uses much more colorful language usually :) When i see that yearning she has in her eyes, that longing for a companion who will love her selflessly, it makes me sad because if there's someone who deserves an eternal prince charming it's Sister Ruhlman. But as we talked with her I knew that someday she is going to marry, and be sealed to an amazing man whether in this life or the next. I know she is going to feel and receive that love that she has never known, and long desired. And guess what? she came to church again! She hasn't been in years, and now she's a regular haha! She said it felt so good to come back! I can't wait to see her tonight at dinner!
Saturday was the day of many miracles though! First we went to see a new investigator we have that's been avoiding us. Her name is Thanh, when we got to her home her father answered the door (he is a member) and said she was not home. Bout 10 minutes later as we were driving we noticed that her dad had called us about 8 times! Thanh had come home and he wanted us to return to his house right away, so we did. We didn't get to talk to her long but we set up a time to meet with her this coming week! I can't wait! About halfway through the day our GPS broke! No good! The problem with Houston is that it is literally impossible to get around without a GPS. We have this huge road map the size of Texas (no pun intended) that I started to use. It was no good. We prayed and luckily our GPS started to work again. But the great thing is that now I know how to read a road map of Houston. I feel like that will probably come in handy one day... just maybe.
Then we stopped by another less actives house and set up an appointment to meet with her this week as well!
The best part of the day was the last thing we did. We had to drop off a flier to the Westbrooks who are a less active family. We thought we would only just be dropping the flier off and leaving but Sister Westbrook invited us in. She has 4 kids ages 11, 8, 6, and 1. They are the coolest kids ever. We got to sit and talk with them for a time. They are so nice. Her husband was not there, he is not a member but she is. You can tell she has a testimony, it's just difficult for her to get to church will all her kids. Her daughter is almost 9, she hasn't been baptized yet but she really wants to be so we offered to come teach her and help set up her baptism. They agreed to it and we're hoping to meet with them this week as well. And guess what? They came to church yesterday!
So here are a few other people you'll probably hear more about...
First I'll start with Symantha! She is a recent Convert of Sister Jones and she comes to the singles ward. She's had a few stumbles since she got baptized but we've been able to talk with her since and she's doing great! We're going to take her through the temple this week for her first time! She is amazing and she is not afraid to tell people about her beliefs. She has been so good to let her friends know her testimony. It's amazing I feel like she is a little missionary herself!
Next there's Marla. She is not a member, but her husband is and she's been taking the lessons for a few weeks now. She still isn't sure if it's true, but we are doing everything we can to find her personal needs and help her know the truth. She's been coming to church and she's had some great questions for us. We challenged her to keep reading the scriptures and praying. She was a little frustrated when we met with her last because she doesn't understand the Book of Mormon when she reads it. We told her to focus on how she feels when she reads it rather than try to understand it all in one go. Hopefully that will help her. She is amazing though.
Then there's David, He is incredible, he has a heart of gold. He has been a member of the church for 2 years but he is Gay. Since being a member of the church he has not acted on it. He is the kindest person I have ever met. His faith is incredible to me, I can't imagine how difficult it can be for him to be a member and have the struggles and temptations he has. But he knows the church is true. He has been to many different churches and he said in his own words that no other church has made him feel as good as the Mormon church has. I know the Lord is so proud of David for choosing to keep the covenants he has made, and I know that David will be blessed for his faithfulness.
Anyways now you know a little about my life this past week and the incredible people I have come across. My favorite thing about being a missionary is getting to know people. I've always been pretty shy, but coming out here I have learned so much about other people. Heavenly Father's children are so wonderful, every one of them. They all have incredible stories to tell. I love Texas, I love the people of Texas. I love being a missionary!
I hope all is well at home! I love you all! Thanks for all the love and support!
Love, Sister Gregson
P.S Katie can you make me some GOOD church CD's? I am in desperate need of good music. Even classical would be nice, or movie soundtracks with just the instrumental! Gracias!
No comments:
Post a Comment