Lets Do This

Family Dear,

 

How are y'all doing?

Good I hope!

 

It's been another crazy week here in Tomball.

Sister Hardy was in pain all week. It wasn't as bad as last Friday when we took her to the ER but it was bad enough that she was just miserable. Luckily they prescribed her some pain medication so that helped but it would knock her out for up to 6 hours. It was good though because she needed the rest. She was in too much pain to go out and work. The ward was incredible they set up splits for us so someone would come and watch Sis Hardy and I was able to go out and do work with the members.

We saw the doctor on Wednesday and because she was still in pain they were certain that it wasn't a passed stone. What they think now is that there is scar tissue in the gall duct and that is what is causing the pain and inflammation. In order to fix that they would need to do that endoscopic ultrasound and put in a temporary stint. Well it's a really high risk procedure and it's rare and expensive so they want to be sure that's what it is before they go in. So they drew her blood Wednesday and scheduled us to come back in in two weeks and have more blood drawn so they could continue to monitor her liver enzymes.

Basically it would have been a lot of waiting with poor sister hardy in pain. The mission doctor told us that if she would indeed need that procedure than sister hardy would be sent home.

After the end of this week we knew we couldn't continue on the way things were going and that the best thing would be for Sister Hardy to get home and get better. It was a hard decision for Sister Hardy but she has been so strong and gracious through this whole thing. She is an incredible missionary and I know she's served the mission the Lord intended for her to serve. We both felt a lot of peace about the possibility of her going home.

Well Saturday night we had stake conference and after the conference sister hardy talked to President and he felt at peace about the decision too. So on Sunday after stake conference President Pingree took my companion away. It was so hard to see her go. I feel so blessed to have been able to be her companion for these short 5 weeks.

Transfers is next week so right now Sister Quist is my temporary companion until transfers. She's amazing and I'm excited to work with her for this week!

 

Even amidst all this we still saw so many blessings and miracles.

We were able to see Robin again!

She told us that after we met with her that next Tuesday she took her daughter to dance class and found out that ALL the dance moms are Mormon! What?! Haha I couldn't believe it and neither could Robin. Heavenly Fathers hand in this was so obvious! She told them that she had met us and we'd given her a Book of Mormon and all the moms were so excited. Robin was telling us how they told her all about wards and conference etc. Anyways basically the Lord is preparing Robin. She's planning on coming to church next week with her family! I'm so excited to see what happens with her!

We also got to visit Carolynn millers family again. Her husband was busy but we met her darling 16 year old daughter. Her name is Brittney and she wants to be there when we share about eternal families with her dad.

 

We also got to meet with Kaylee and she's doing as great as always. She has loved reading the Book of Mormon.

 

Other than that the week was mostly spent in doctors offices and in the apartment. We needed to get Sister Hardy better. Her health was the most important thing this week.

 

I miss sister hardy but I know she's where she is supposed to be.

 

The ward has been so incredible through all of this. They have gone above and beyond to make sure that sister hardy was taken care of.

 

There was one thing I wanted to share with you from our Stake Conference. One thing that was said by a recent convert about hastening the work was "The Lord is hastening His work and the work will hasten with or without us. Are we helping the work move along or are we just a spectator watching the miracles around us and not taking part in this great work? Let's do this. Let's get out and work. We need to fight alongside the Lord."

I loved her words! As covenant children of God we were not meant to sit and watch. We were meant to go and do. We must assist the Lord in the hastening His work in order to reach our full potential and become like Him.

Start small and pray hard.

 

Thank you for all your prayers. Please continue to pray for Sister Hardy!

 

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

 

The Kingdom of God or nothing!

 

Love, Sister Gregson

A Visit to the ER

4/21/14

Dearest family,

 

How are you?!

I am SO excited for McKenna! and Berk! They are going to be some amazing missionaries!

Boy oh boy has this been a crazy week!

 

So remember how last week I said it was getting hot? Well that morning it was SO hot and humid and by the time we left the computer lab and walked outside it had rained and gone down to 55 degrees. It was cold!? What? Weather here is so weird. But I'm totally ok with it cooling down because it pushed back summer a bit.

It's warmed up now and it's back in the 80's but it's been really nice.

 

We've seen a lot of miracles this week! First was Patricia. She is one of our new investigators. We've been trying to meet with her for the past... mmm... probably about 8 weeks. She is a hair dresser and she works from home and the only day she has off is Tuesdays so we tried her on Tuesday. Well she let us right in but she was in the middle of doing someone's hair! I felt so bad! I was worried that this woman would be upset that we were intruding on her hair appointment but she was really nice. Well Patricia continued to work on her hair and talk to us and after a time she said "Jill (the woman's whose hair she was working on) is a member of your church!" Oh my it was so awesome! Jill lives closer to Houston. She's actually not even in our mission but she happened to come get her hair done at Patricia's on the day we stop by?! Amazing! God is so good. Well Patricia started sharing more with us about her life. Basically she's really prepared for the gospel. Many things have happened to her since she last met with the missionaries that have had a profound effect on her and changed her perspective. She asked us questions about our missions and our beliefs - All while dyeing  Jill's hair and wrapping it in tinfoil (i was a little worried by the end that Jill's hair would turn out to be some outrageous color but Patricia can do that stuff with her eyes closed obviously). We taught her a very brief overview of the restoration and Jill helped. Patricia said it was more believable to her now than it was before when the missionaries shared it. All this going on while Jill's hair is still being wrapped in tinfoil. Definitely the most interesting set up I've been in when teaching the Restoration. '

Well to make a long story short Patricia wants us to come back next week and share more. She requested that we bring the Restoration video because she really wants to see it. haha

I can't wait to see her again. She is amazing and so prepared. She has been surrounded by members recently and she recognizes that because of that God is trying to tell her she needs to learn more.

 

We also met with Rosa this week and we had an absolutely incredible lesson with her. The spirit is always so strong with Rosa. We taught her about the Fall, our purpose, and the Atonement. Rosa felt the spirit. This is the first time in her life that she's been taught these things with the full truth. She didn't have a full understanding of why we need the Savior and what it was that He did for us. It has been really eye-opening for her. She thought it was very profound and there where moments where we sat in sacred silence as she pondered on something that we would share. It felt so good to bear testimony of the Savior. Sister Howard and Sister Hardy also bore powerful testimony of Him and Rosa was just in awe. She really wants to be better at following Christ more fully in her life. This next week we will be going on a church tour with her and I can't wait for her to feel the spirit there!

After the lesson Rosa said the closing prayer. It was the first time she prayed out loud the way we'd taught her and she said the most beautiful and sincere prayer. I love her so much.

We were also able to share the because of Him video with her and she loved it.

 

Kaylee is doing awesome! She was able to go to youth conference this week and that was a huge miracle in itself. Well out here for youth conference they did what they call Moroni's Quest. It was a three day camping thing kind of like trek only what they do is reenact the stories of the Book of Mormon. This was perfect for Kaylee since we just started reading the Book of Mormon with her. They even had a part where during a dance all the sudden the lights cut out and they heard thunder and then Christ appeared to the youth just like in the Book of Mormon. They all got to see and touch the prints in His hands. I am so excited to hear Kaylee's experience there. It sounded like an incredible Youth Conference.

 

Well now for the crazy part of the week.

On Friday morning Sister Hardy started having some pain in her upper back and stomach. It lasted for a short time though and by 10 she was fine and we were out the door headed for an appointment. Well once we got in that house the pain hit again but worse this time. She was having shortness of breath and she got really pale and shaky. The woman we were visiting was so kind. She had Sis hardy lay down and took good care of her. She threw up and was in a lot of pain. Well we just had her lie there for a few hours while this woman - Kathy, took care of her. Then she was fine again but we just took her home to rest. Well she slept for a couple hours and then was good to go again. (See this is the problem with missionaries we are stubborn and even when stuff like this happens we still try to go out and work and it's not usually a good idea but we can't help it! It's the Lord's work!) So we had a service project that night. Nothing too crazy just helping serve food at a stake activity. Well when we got there Sister Hardy was still feeling fine but we asked Bro Wake to give her a blessing and he did. Well she started feeling weak so she sat down and then the pain started to return. One of the members of our ward is a paramedic and he came and checked her vitals and everything was alright there but she was still in a lot of pain. She couldn't hardly move out of the chair. Well the ward members helped me get her to the car and I got her home and in bed. We knew we needed to take her to the doctors so we were calling sister Pingree to get the ok. Sister Hardy got in a hot bath and was doing alright but when she got out she started throwing up again and was just pale as a sheet. She was shaking and was in so much pain she was almost delusional. Finally I got a hold of sister Pingree and she agreed that we needed to get her to the ER. I was so scared. She was literally writhing in pain. The ward knew what was going on and almost immediately after I got off the phone with sister Pingree Bro and sis Williams called and said they wanted to come with us to the ER. I was so relieved. Well I drove like a crazy woman to the ER while poor sis hardy was just crying out in pain. We got to the ER with the Williams and waited and waited. Finally they got us back there to run some tests and they got some pain medication in her. They ran some tests and did an ultrasound. At about 1 am the Williams had to leave. I was so grateful they came, it was such a tender mercy. Then at 4am they finally got us a room. I was so tired but I had gotten my second wind so I couldn't sleep plus I was worried. My first all-nighter as a missionary wasn't all that fun I'm not gonna lie. Well Saturday was just a waiting day. We were waiting for the Doctor to come tell us the results of the ultrasound. The ward has been so good to us though. Sister Williams came to visit at the hospital and left us with her tablet so we could watch Mormon messages and Bible videos. Sister hardy was on a clear liquid diet but the ward brought me breakfast lunch and dinner. Finally at 4pm the doctor came  and told us the ultra sound was inconclusive and that they would need to do an MRI. So at 7pm she went in for the MRI and sis Williams went with sis hardy and sis sowers took me home to shower and get stuff for sis hardy and me. Like I said the ward has been SO SO good to us. They have helped us SO much! That night in the hospital we had a room full of members joking and laughing. It reminded me so much of when the whole family came to visit me in the hospital and we were so loud.

Well the next day  - Easter Sunday (the ward members also brought us an Easter basket) was our last day in the hospital. We found out that sis hardy had had a stone in her gall duct. They believe she passed it but they need to do one last procedure - endoscopic ultrasound- to make sure there is no further problems. They sent us home with medicine and the procedure will be on Wednesday morning.

So like I said it's been a crazy week and I'm exhausted. I feel so tired but my body won't sleep. Hopefully we'll be able to get back in the groove of things and go out to work. We're not going to push it though I want to make sure sis hardy gets her rest. Plus even if we wanted to go out and work right away I literally think the ward would chain us to the wall in our apartment.

 

So with that experience we saw a lot of miracles! We were able to talk to a lot of people in the hospital about the church and what we do as missionaries!

The ward prayed for us and has done so much for us I can't even name all the things they've done.

 

I wanted to share one last experience that I had.

So like I said Easter morning we were in the hospital. Sister hardy was asleep and so I took some time to study the resurrection of the Savior. It was such an amazing experience to be in a hospital on Easter. I was in a place where birth and death happen on a daily basis. A place where there is a lot of fear, a place where a lot of peoples bodies are failing them or causing them despair and pain. A place where hope can be hard to find. Being there and studying about the Savior's resurrection was a powerful sacred experience for me. I read the words in John "in the world ye shall have tribulation, but be of good cheer for I have overcome the world." And he did. I felt the spirit reconfirm that to me so strongly. Christ lives. He lives! I know it. He died for us and now He lives for us. Because of Him we can have hope. Because of Him all those people in that hospital will live again and will have perfect and healthy bodies. I cannot express to you the love I have for my Savior. I feel so grateful to have this chance to serve as one of His representatives, to be a witness of Him, and to have this hope in my life. I know that Jesus Christ lives and loves us and because of him we all can be healed, whole, and live eternally with our Father in Heaven.

I'm sure you've all seen that "Because of Him" video on the church website and if you haven't watch it. We've been sharing it with as many people as we can.

 

I love you all! Thank you for your prayers and support!

 

He lives!

The Kingdom of God or Nothing!

Love, Sister Gregson

 

Hospital pics- So you can see that Sister Hardy is alive!

 

Pics with Missionaries

 Beautiful Texas

 Shelby got BAPTIZED!!!

 

 

Millicent Sharpley

4/14/14

Good morning dear family!

 

How are you?

I hope you're enjoying some beautiful spring weather. We enjoyed our spring for a few days.. more like a few hours...  and now the humidity is coming... yay...

The good thing is that I don't have to use any lotion and really I haven't had to put any on since I've been here. I think I used my lotion once. The great thing too is that people really like to give lotion as gifts so I have a ton a lotion I've stocked up on for when I'm back in Utah shriveling up. It's gonna be fun.

 

This week has been one of those great roller coaster weeks. It started out kind of tough. The beginning of the week was a little slow, we were going door after door with not a soul in sight. We had a lesson with Lawanda set up and we were actually able to meet with her but at the end of the lesson she said that she wanted to stop the lessons for a while. Not because she is against it, she just doesn't have the time. So Lawanda dropped us. It's funny how much missionary work is sort of like dating. Sometimes it works out with an ordinance at the end, and sometimes you get dumped :) haha that's seriously how I felt. Lawanda broke up with us and we're the clingy ones that are having attachment issues. :)

Anyways the good news is that at the end of the lesson when she told us it wasn't going to work out - her reason being that she is just too busy- she said "but call me every once in a while and maybe I'll have time." So there's some hope!

 

Then the next day we had a lesson scheduled with Velma. Well we called to make sure it was going to work out and she cancelled because she had a doctors appointment. She has had to cancel our appointments for the last 4 weeks and she's been feeling really bad about it just like Lawanda so she also dropped us and said that she hated to keep putting us off so for now we are stopping the lessons with her too. We got dumped twice within 24 hours of each other. I was pretty bummed out so all that chocolate that you sent me for my Birthday came in handy :)

But with her there is still hope. She said when things die down she wants to continue the lessons. Her Granddaughter still comes to activity days and Velma and Sister Snideman still keep in contact and are really good friends.

 

Then to add another loop in I found out this week that Beverly passed away. Now I haven't really written to you much about Beverly because she is active in the church. She is an older woman in the ward that was bed ridden and we would visit her quite often and share messages of hope and strength with her. I grew to love this woman so much. She was so strong. She had just lost her husband and her health was failing but her testimony was stronger than ever. She reminds me so much of Beth Brand. How is Beth by the way? I knew it was Beverly's time to go and it wasn't surprising that she passed but it surprised me how sad it made me. Going through that brings all those memories of losing Dad back and all those weird days leading up after his death that just feel like a bad dream. I felt that heartache again not only for myself but for Beverly's family.

I'm so grateful for the chance I got to meet Beverly though. Looking back now I think I knew that the last time we visited her would be the last time we saw her. We shared a message with her from President Thomas S. Monson's talk "I will not fail thee nor forsake thee" and she just broke down into tears. I knew that it was one of those moments where we got to stand in Christ's place and comfort this woman with so much on her plate. The spirit was strong and as I said the closing prayer I felt very impressed to pray that angels would come and bear her up and strengthen her. I'd never prayed for that in my prayers ever so I knew it was directed by the spirit. I knew that one of those angels was her husband. I remember grabbing Bev's hand and telling her I loved her as I watched the tears run down her face. I could feel the love the Lord had for her in that moment. Now she is free from the body that crippled her and I know she's doing wonderful work on the other side. And she gets to be with her husband.

This is what I love about being a representative of Christ. He cannot be here to physically hold the hands of those who are suffering and express his love for them, but we have been called to be in his place and do it for him.

 

We also had exchanges this week and at one point at the end of the day we were out tracting. We met a lot of people that were really friendly and things were going well, we even had a return appointment. Then at one of the last doors we tracted a woman answered the door and to put it simply she wasn't very Christ like. We knew from the statues outside of her house that she was Catholic so we thought a family history approach would be great! Well as we started sharing with her the resources our church has for family history she said almost accusingly "so this must be a way you try to get people to join your church" We mentioned why family history was so important to our church and that it was for everybody and that people of all faiths come to our family history centers. Then again in that unkind accusing tone "Well if I were to do family history work I would want to do it through the Catholics or a Christian church." We explained to her we were Christian but she wouldn't have it. I won't tell you what she said but basically she told us that what we believed about Christ was wrong and that we were not Christian. Did I want to correct her? You bet I did! But I knew that that's what she was looking for. She wanted to fight and Bible bash. So with that we encouraged her to do her family history work, we thanked her for her time, and we walked away. I could feel her disgust towards us as we talked with her. It was crazy to me that she disliked us so much she would refuse to even step in our research centers.

We get that a lot our here in Texas. It's nothing new to me now. People quite literally think we are evil. They really despise us. Since I've been in Texas I feel I know a little more about being "despised and rejected of men." People hate us when they don't even know us because of what they've heard. I'm used to that kind of response now but it's still hard. It's like a flip of a switch. Once they hear the word "Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints their entire countenance changes and you can feel the dislike they have for you.

Now, I can't blame that woman for the way she acted. She has strong faith and I know she was just trying to do what she believes is right. But I just think, in today's world especially, that we could all be a little more respectful to people of different faiths. Weather she meant to or not she made us feel like the scum of the earth, it was as if she took something so precious to us and threw it on the ground and stomped all over it. I think we could all be a little kinder to one another. As children of God trying to be like Christ we should not put each other down because of our different beliefs. There will always be differences in opinions about religion but we should respect God enough to respect His children and their personal beliefs because those beliefs mean a great deal to us.

Because of all these instances at the beginning of my week I dove into the scriptures and prayed hard. I knew I needed some support from God to help me move forward and not lose sight or focus. It was a great help to me.

 

Well the end of the week was much better. Just like Elder Wirthlin said "Sunday always comes!" 

We got another potential investigator named Trisha.

We met with our new investigator Kevin and our first lesson will be today!

We had another lesson with Kaylee and she is incredible as usual! Her comprehension of the scriptures amazes me. I always think she is probably really confused after we finish a chapter or section but her capability to interpret and apply the scriptures truly is a gift.

Also Shelby got baptized this week! And the other incredible miracle is that Aunt Darla went to the baptism and even came to church with Shelby that next day!!

We also got another new investigator named Jim! Finding him was a miracle because we were out tracting at night and at night no one answers the door... usually. So we had no interaction with anybody. Well as we walked back to our car Jim and his wife were outside with their dogs. (two great things about Texas, they can't stay inside their houses forever because they all have to take their dogs out and all the men have to carefully wax and polish their trucks at some point so they can't hide for long :) ). Anyways we found out that Jim believes in God but he doesn't affiliate himself with any particular religion. He said he'd definitely be willing to listen to what we have to say!

My other miracle this week is Millicent Sharpley which is why she is the subject title.

So we get an hour every week to do familysearch.org and I have been determined to find a name to do work for. I thought it was going to be hard because so much of the work has already been done and if it hasn't it's usually been reserved by some distant family member I've never heard of. Well before I started I prayed that I would be led to someone who was ready. It was like the spirit took over after that and my finger just started clicking. Eventually I found a man named Alma Gregson and his work was done but his wife's work was not. All it said about his wife was "Millicent" and "deceased." Well I knew this was my in! Alma is the great-grandson of my third (or maybe it was fourth) great grandfather. So I started searching records and looking for duplicates and I found her! Millicent Sharpley was her name! She was born in Preston, Lancashire, UK and she died at the age of 25. She gave birth to two children before her death! I even found some records of her parents also who aren't even entered into family search! Well I was able to pile enough information together and collect enough sources to print off an ordinance request sheet and the next time we go to the temple I'll be doing her work! Seriously it was like something was guiding each click of the mouse as I got to her name! I am SO excited to do her work at the temple! Now I was able to do this all in under and hour so my message to you today is that all you need is an hour to find someone. So go and find someone! It is so exciting to be doing missionary work not only on this side of the veil, but on the other side too!

 

Well sorry I've typed your ears off! There was just so much I learned and experienced this week and I feel so truly blessed. I love being a missionary and wouldn't trade these experiences for the world!

 

Love you all!

Thank you for all the prayers and support!

The Kingdom of God or Nothing!

Love, Sister Gregson

Happy Birthday to me!

family dear!

How are you?

Thanks for the Birthday packages!

My Birthday was great! Esther Howard made me a homemade German Chocolate cake and it made me feel right at home!

Didn't you just love General Conference! It is like the greatest thing ever and I'm so sad it's already over. There were so many wonderful things said and I can't wait to go back and study their words.

So this week has been another incredible one!

 

Kaylee is a rock star! We started reading the Book of Mormon from the beginning with her and she amazed me. We read about Lehi praying for Laman and Lemuel and how Laman and Lemuel were murmuring and doubted their father. When we finished the chapter Kaylee very thoughtfully said "I feel like Lehi, I'm praying and trying to do what's right and My mom and step dad are Laman and Lemuel" Her parents haven't been very supportive of her beliefs and they often quarrel with her about it. She said that what she learned from Lehi is that she can pray for her parents.

 

Rosa is doing so well! This past week she came to the Howards home for FHE and it was incredible! We gave the Howards free reign on the topic because we wanted Rosa to hear from them instead of us. They put together a wonderful lesson. They kept Rosa involved and Rosa I think felt right at home. Their son Jonathan who recently came home from his mission in Mexico gave the lessons. He showed clips of Christ from the movie "The Testaments" and gave us a paper on which we were to write down impressions we had and questions we had. It was perfect for Rosa. After each clip he would ask us to share the impressions and it invited the spirit so strongly. At the end Rosa thanked us for inviting her to come. She mentioned that she was having a really rough day mentally, emotionally, and physically and that now all those feelings were gone. She said she felt really happy. It was incredible. I love her so much and I desire so badly for her to find the truth. Ever since I first met Rosa I had a strong feeling that I knew her before. I feel strongly that someday she will accept the message of the restored gospel.

 

We haven't been able to meet with Velma or Dorisette this week but we're scheduled to meet with them this coming week! Hopefully it works out!

 

We got another new investigator this week! Her name is Tiffany and she was an old potential investigator. It was amazing! We stopped at her home and she answered the door. We talked to her about who we were what we would share and asked her if she would like to know more and she flat out said "Yes I would!" It was one of those moments where you're kind of shocked by the "yes" response and the words "really?" almost come out of my mouth. When it's as easy as that sometimes I wonder if I'm dreaming but there really are people out there who are so prepared and Tiffany is one of those people. I'm really excited to meet with her this week!

 

We also met with another one of our new investigators whose name is Robin. She has a crazy schedule and when we stopped by she was heading out the door but she had some questions for us so we talked to her for about 15 minutes about the Book of Mormon and what sets our religion apart from others. Her response was incredible too! She thought it made so much sense that God would give us a Prophet and Apostles for our day. She believes that the Book of Mormon could be true and she is planning on reading it and praying about it. She said "You know I know that God is going to reveal his true church soon because this world needs it!" I wanted to  shout out "this is it!!!!" I'm really excited to see how things go with her too. She is another prepared person that I feel like just fell into our lap. I've just been in awe these past two weeks at the miracles we've seen because they have just come. I was working so hard and nothing was happening and now the blessings are coming and it's the most wonderful thing! Patience and endurance works!

 

I'm so grateful for the blessing of being a missionary. I love this gospel so much and I know it to be true with all my heart. I know that Jesus Christ is our Savior and Redeemer and that He lives! I know the Bible and the Book of Mormon are true. We are so blessed to have the knowledge we have! We have the great opportunity in life to share the hope we have with others! Sharing the gospel is the best! It brings more happiness to my life than I've ever known.

 

Thank you all so much for your prayers and support! I love y'all!

 

The Kingdom of God or Nothing!

Love, Sister Gregson

My new companion and me

Happy Birthday to me

Some of my favorite Sister/Hermanas 

 

New Comp

3/31/14

Oh hey family!

 

How are y'all doing?

 

Things here are so wonderful!

I got my new companion! Her name is Sister Hardy, she's 19, from Fort Collins, Colorado, been out 6 months and an incredible missionary in every way! I was praying really hard that I would get a companion who wanted to work hard and would love the people and my prayers were answered. I can already tell that this is going to be a great companionship!

 

We saw so many miracles this week I don't even know where to begin!

First I'll tell you the greatest miracle of all! So you might remember that when I was serving in Bryan we were teaching Abby's friend Shelby and Shelby wanted to get baptized so badly. We set a date with her but her aunt would never give her permission to be baptized. Well after I left her aunt pretty much cut Shelby off from the church. Shelby still could hang out with Abby but she couldn't ever come to church or mutual activities and the sisters didn't get to meet with her anymore. Well even though I've been serving down here in Tomball I would still pray that Shelby would be able to get baptized in the Lord's time. Well on Tuesday morning I got a call from Sister Weaver informing me that Shelby's aunt finally gave her permission to be baptized and that the sisters would be meeting with her that night to set a date!!! So Shelby is getting baptized on April 12th!!!! I can't even tell you how happy this made me! Unfortunately I probably won't be able to go because Bryan is so far away from my area but I will definitely be there in spirit! I wish I could put into words what a miracle this is in my life and in Shelby's life. The minute I met Shelby even before we started teaching her the lessons I remember thinking "She's going to be a great missionary someday." She has been raised with such a difficult life and without this gospel her life could have a completely different outcome. I can't wait to see what she does with her life!

 

We also had a great miracle with Dorisette this week. Remember how I said that we were struggling during lessons trying to find a balance between teaching simply and answering Dorisettes deep questions. Well I had been praying all week that Dorisettes heart would be softened and she would accept the fact that there are answers in this life that we won't receive but that God has given us what we need. Normally she is not one to be content with that kind of answer so I was so nervous for our next lesson. Well I'll tell you what the Lord answers prayers. We explained to Dorisette that we wouldn't be able to answer her question because we simply didn't have the answer. We talked a lot about faith. Well Dorisette sat back in her chair and to my shock and relief simply said "Alright let's move on then." I was amazed at how humble she was in that moment. She is so amazing. The Lord really did soften her heart. After that we read 3 Nephi 11 and it brought the spirit into that lesson so strongly. We talked about how the spirit is a still small voice and she agreed that the only way to hear it is to put yourself in a quiet place and give yourself time with the Lord. We committed her this week to do just that - set aside a time to sit and ponder on the Book of Mormon, pray about it, and see what she feels in her heart. She promised that she would.

 

We also had a lesson with Rosa again. We talked about the Atonement and it really made an impression on her because she truly had no idea what the Atonement really is. One thing I've noticed since being on my mission is that no one really understands fully the Atonement. I've taught many people from many different religions and almost every person taught had never even heard the word Atonement. None of them have been taught that Christ suffered in the garden not only for our sins but for our pains and difficulties. They don't really understand (because they've never been taught) that in that garden Christ literally bled from every pore because her literally took upon him our pains and sins. Many of them focus on what Christ suffered on the cross but what many of them don't realize is that the pain of being crucified was much less in comparison to what he suffered in the garden. Well it was amazing to share this with Rosa. To help her to understand that what Christ suffered he suffered for her. She was touched but also intimidated. She realized that this gave her an added measure of responsibility in life. And I'm glad that she recognized that! Christ's suffering for our sins doesn't take away our responsibility to be the best we can, to repent, and to work everyday at becoming better. I'm glad she saw that. This week we've invited her to come to the Howard's home for Family Home Evening and I hope she will recognize the spirit there.

 

We had a lesson with Kaylee this week as well! She is doing well and has been coming to church regularly now. She wants to start reading the Book of Mormon from the very beginning again and this time she wants to finish it all the way through so we've set a goal with her to finish reading the Book of Mormon before her sister comes home from her mission in December. This week we asked the ward counsel to fast with us for Kaylee. We prayed that Kaylee's mother's heart would soften and she would allow Kaylee to be baptized, and not only that but that her mother would have a desire to know more about the gospel.

 

We also had a huge miracle with another one of our less-actives. Sister Cecil and I had been trying to get to see this woman ever since I've been here and she would always give us the run-around. Well Sister Hardy and I went by to see her and she opened the door and said "come on in" my jaw just about flew wide open. I couldn't believe it was that easy after all this time. We had a really great talk with her. She is struggling right now and feeling really lonely. She recognizes that the Lord has been urging her to come back to church and she has a spark of a desire to, it's just a matter of actually coming back. Hopefully we'll be able to meet with her more and help her.

 

Another miracle happened with the family of a former investigator! A few weeks back I was looking through our old records and this woman named Carolynn really stuck out to me so I knew we needed to visit her. That same day that I found her name we were having dinner with a member and this member asked if we had ever tried to visit this same exact woman. Apparently this member had gone with the missionaries to lessons with Carolynn years ago and she had been thinking about her. Carolynn was really close to baptism at the time the missionaries were meeting with her. Well the next day we went to the home and a family friend who was watching the house answered the door and informed us the Carolynn had passed away from cancer about a year ago but that her husband and teenage daughter still lived in that house. Ever since then we've been trying to meet with this family. I knew we needed to tell them that they would be able to see their wife and mother again someday. I felt that is wasn't just the spirit that prompted us to go there but that it was Carolynn herself that needed us to tell her family that she was waiting for them. We've been desperately knocking on their door for the past 5 weeks and finally this week we caught the husband home. We told him who we were and how missionaries used to meet with his wife. We told him he could see his wife again. We testified of eternal families and invited him to learn more. He said that we could come back and that he would love to hear our message! He is going to be out of town for a couple weeks but we're planning on meeting with him after that. I can't wait to share more with him!

 

There are so many other miracles that happened but I'll just share one more. We have a new investigator and her name is Robin! We're meeting with her this week and I'm really excited to work with her!

 

So many wonderful things are happening in this area! It is a testimony to me that the Lord has heard my prayers on behalf of these people and also that when we are patient and continue to work hard blessings do come. Both Sister Hardy and I feel strongly that good things are coming. There are people here that are prepared and we're ready to go out and keep trying to find them. This work is so wonderful! There are so many other things that have happened that I wish I had time to share but the most important thing to say is that the Lord answers prayers.

 

I love you all so much and I hope you have a great week!

 

The Kingdom of God or Nothing!

 

Love, Sister Gregson

 

One of my favorite Sisters- Sister Filikitonga

 

Staying in Tomball

3/24/14

Hey y'all!

How's it goin?

 

To start off my email I have to give a shout out to Grandpa and say HAPPY BIRTHDAY! I love you soooo much!

Oh and before I forget I've had a member of my ward drilling me for the past 2 transfers to ask you mom if you know anybody named Leslie Nash. I know we know a Nash family somehow but I'm not sure if it's the same one...

Also I need to mention that at that same members home we had dinner and the wife's mother was visiting. Her name is Bonnie Robinson and she knows Angie from working over the sorority. So anyways that was a funny connection to make! She had only great things to say about Angie.

 

Last night was transfer calls and I'm staying here in Tomball and Sister Cecil is getting transferred. We won't know where until Tuesday morning at transfer meeting.

 

This week was pretty great! We saw some great miracles!

 

We were able to meet with Dorisette this week. Dorisette is so wonderful but it has been so difficult to keep her lessons simple. She is so intelligent and she just wants to know EVERYTHING and so she is always asking us these deep questions that get into the deep doctrine. It's been difficult to teach simply when she has these questions and we don't want to cast her questions aside we want to answer them for her. So that has been our current challenge with her - finding a balance between teaching simply and answering her questions and concerns. The spirit is always there the strongest when the doctrine is kept simple. We talked to her a lot about faith and how there are many things that God has revealed to us but there is also so much more that we will never know or fully comprehend in this life because faith is required. That helped put her mind at ease a little bit but she still wants her questions answered. I have had to do more studying and researching of the Book of Mormon and Bible in these past two transfers than I ever have in my life. It's been a challenge but so rewarding.

 

We were also able to meet with a former investigator from about 3 years ago. Her name is Cynthia. She is really cool! She loves having the missionaries come over and chat about religion. The only problem is that she doesn't want to actually take the lessons and she has no interest at all in joining our church. It was really nice to talk to her though because she has the utmost respect for our church and thinks the world of our members. She has an incredible life too! She is a rock n' roll photographer so she takes pictures of the famous bands. She is really good friends of the band Kiss, I don't really care much for them but it was still really neat to learn about her life and her different experiences. She is going to let us come back and do service for her so hopefully that will help to soften her heart and maybe we'll get to share more with her. Her biggest hang-up is modern day prophets.

 

We also got to see Kaylee again this week! She just got home from El Salvador. Unfortunately she did not meet any Hermana Poulter's but my prayer was still answered because she saw some missionaries while she was there and she was pretty excited about that. Our other prayers were answered too because her aunt has come to live with her and her mother so her aunt now takes care of her younger sister and she is able to come to mutual and church! It's so amazing how the Lord answers our prayers.

When we last saw her before her trip we taught her about gratitude from For Strength of Youth and we challenged her while she was in El Salvador to write down everyday 3 things that she was grateful for. I wasn't sure that she would remember to do that while on vacation but she did! I was so amazed by her experience with that. She told us that her experience there made her realize how blessed she is and how much God has given her!

 

I also saw many miracles when I was on exchanges with the Bridgeland sisters this week. It's Sister Davis (my wonderful old companion) and Sister Heaps (who is also a wonderful missionary) and I was able to go to their area with Sister Heaps. They whitewashed the area and they are doing such a great job! We were so blessed while on exchanges! The first few homes we went to no one was home and as we were leaving that particular neighborhood Sister Heaps felt prompted to visit one more house of a less active that they've been trying to meet for the last 6 weeks. So we flipped the car around and went back to this mans house. Miracle! He answered the door! We had a really great chat with him. We asked him why he no longer came to church and he told us how he hadn't been active for probably about 20 years because he had a falling out with his mother who wanted him to serve a mission when he wanted to join the navy. We then asked him if he had any desire to ever come back. It was so neat because he said "It's funny because I've actually been thinking about that a lot lately." We offered to share the discussions with him and he said "well yeah but I think it would be more for my wife than for me." His wife is not a member of the church but she isn't opposed to it. So the Sisters are going to go back and share the discussions with him and his wife! He also wants his son to get involved in Boy Scouts through the church rather than they school he's doing it through now. It was so wonderful to get to talk to this man. We felt such great love for him as we spoke to him and encouraged him to come back. I told Sister Heaps to keep me updated on him!

That same night we also visited one of their potential investigators and his wife answered the door and let us in and we were able to teach the first lesson to both him and his wife. They are an incredible family. The minute you walk into their home you could feel the spirit. They are Baptist and they have 3 children. They love Christ so much and they are doing all they can to raise their children in a loving home filled with the spirit. They had some concerns about the restoration as most investigators do but we did our best to resolve their concerns and they accepted the invitation to read and pray about the Book of Mormon. The husband said the most amazing prayer at the end. We all knelt down together and in his prayer he asked that he would know if this book were true and if this is something he should pursue. It was so sincere and I know that if he and his wife maintain that sincerity and keep their commitments they will receive and answer.

Sister Heaps and Sister Davis are such amazing missionaries. I feel so blessed to be able to be a Sister Training leader. I learn so much from these incredible Sisters. Every exchange I feel as though I am learning so much more from them than they could ever learn from me. They are so good and so pure and I feel the love that Heavenly Father has for them spread through me every time I see them. I feel how proud and grateful He is for their service and diligence. There are some amazing missionaries serving right now and every exchange I go on it's always made very clear to my why the age change happened when it did. These young women are ready and the world needs their goodness.

 

I am so grateful to be a missionary and to have the chance to share this wonderful gospel with others. This gospel is the greatest hope and happiness we can have in this life.

We have started sharing the first vision with the members of our ward and the spirit is always so strong as we recite Josephs account by heart. We ask the members how knowing the truth about the gospel has changed their life. It is amazing the things that they say and the testimonies they share. When you think about what would be different about your life if you didn't have the gospel it can only be worse. Then you think about all the people who don't have the knowledge we have. Think about how much better their lives would be if we shared it with them. We can't keep this to ourselves, it's much to important to do that. It's more important than any fear we may have about sharing it.

 

I hope all is well at home! Thanks for your prayers!

 

The Kindgom of God or Nothing!

 

Love, Sister Gregson

I'm Trying

3/17/14

Family Dear,

 

How are you?

 

This week in Texas has been great! We saw so many miracles and I learned SO much!

 

We had a great lesson with Rosa this week. Last time we met with her we taught her the beginning of the Plan of Salvation so this time we were planning on starting where we left off. We had Sister Howard there and she always invites such a wonderful spirit.

After we started with a prayer we followed up with how her praying was going. I'm sure I've told you this but one of the things Rosa loves about us is the way we pray. Last time we saw her we committed her to pray the way that we do. Well she tried it! She's been trying to pray that way which is totally foreign to her because she used to wrote and memorized prayers. She said it was difficult at times for her to think of what to say so we explained to her how prayer is just a conversation with God. She thought that was so neat.

Well like I said we were prepared to teach her the Plan of Salvation but if there's one thing you have to learn as a missionary that they tell you over and over again it's that we teach people not lessons. Often times you go into a lesson thinking you're going to teach one thing but then the tables turn and the investigator always needs something different. Well with Rosa she began to open us to us about her daughter. Recently her daughter (who is about 21) has been going through kind of a rebellious stage. She told Rosa that she is atheist and it has been really troubling to Rosa. Her daughter has also decided to go work over in Florida and Rosa is worried about the decisions and kind of friends she will make. It was amazing how the spirit took over and helped Sister Cecil, Sister Howard, and I to change our plans and share with Rosa what she needed in that moment. We talked a lot about prayer and her divine role as a mother. Because she is raising one of God's children she can ask God for help. He knows better than anyone what her daughters needs and He will help her know what to do and say. I was able to share Mikes story with her and how at one point all you could do for Mike mom was pray for him. I told her that I believed the reason so many miracles happened with Mike was because of the faithful prayers of his mother. That then led me to share with her the story of Alma and his prayers for his son. The Angel tells Alma the younger that it was because of the faithful prayers of his father that the angel came. She was very touched by both of those stories. Sister Howard too shared her experience with her son Jonny who served a mission is Mexico. There were many times where she feared for his life but because of prayer she always knew that the Lord would take care of him and keep him safe. I could see the wonder and amazement in Rosa's eyes as she saw the blessing that prayer was to each of us. I know that Rosa is a wonderful mother. I could feel how grateful Heavenly Father was to her and how proud He was of the way that she has raised her children. Rosa's daughter is visiting her this week so we encouraged her to pray and ask for help. We promised her if she would do this that the Lord would give her the words to say and the knowledge of how to help her daughter. Rosa wants us to meet her daughter before she leaves so hopefully we'll get a chance to talk to her.

 

We also had a chance to meet with our new investigator Mary. She is so wonderful. She loves Christ so much! The only problem is she likes to talk and we didn't really get a word in but we were able to sneak in a few precious truths about the gospel. We invited her to the Women's Conference and she was really excited about going to that so we'll see what happens. She told us one of these weeks she was going to show up to church and surprise us so I'm looking forward to that day if it comes. :)

 

We ended up not being able to meet with Shelly this week but I'm not giving up on that woman because she is the only person, the only one person (that wasn't a former investigator), that we've tracted into since I've been here that said we could come back and share more about our faith with her. Yesterday we decided to drop in and see if she was home. She's hard to catch because she has crazy work schedules but we caught her home! She invited us in and she didn't have much time so we couldn't stay but she said "could you give me the address to your church, I want to bring my daughters and come next week." I was more than happy to give her that address! We haven't even been able to sit down and have a discussion with this woman, she doesn't know a thing about our church but she wants to come "because" she said "y'all are just so sweet and kind every time I see you so I wanna be there." I hope and pray everything will work out so that she can come. I hope she will feel the spirit and desire to know more.

 

Another miracle happened a few days ago. We were out working (as opposed to what I don't know because we're always working) and it was another one of those days where no one we planned to see was home or available (or willing to answer the door) so we decided to do some contacting on a street. There were only a few families outside but we were able to talk to them. None of them said they would like to know more but they were all so nice to us and we had a good conversation with them. The thing I love about being a missionary at least for me is that you are sensitive to how prepared people are. That probably sounds confusing and its hard to describe but the best way I can think of it is to share one experience I had that morning with a family. We walked up to the father and he was out doing yard work. His two beautiful little girls were out playing and there were so excited to talk to us. Well we talked a little bit to the father about eternal families and he said he wasn't trying to ignore us or put us down but that he just didn't have time to learn more right now. I was sad he said no, but I could sense that he was someone who was close to being ready for the gospel. I could envision this family coming to church, getting baptized and eventually being sealed. All that just from a hand shake and a short conversation. I know it sounds just like wishful thinking but you literally feel that that is what will happen someday for this family in that moment and I know it's part of the calling.

 

Well that same morning I was really working on being receptive to the spirit and where we needed to go and I felt strongly that we needed to try this former investigator names Stephanie. We'd met her before and she had said that she would love for us to come by but she is really busy and never home when we go by. Then her daughter started having seizures and other health problems so we talked to her and decided it would be best if she just called us when things died down and she felt ready. Since that time we haven't gone back to see her but I felt impressed to stop by and just see how she and her daughter are doing. She was home and she let us in! We asked her how things were going and she opened up to us. She is really going through a lot right now and I can tell that she is so overwhelmed. We were able to share part of Thomas S. Monson's last conference talk "I Will not Leave you nor forsake you" and she broke down in tears. She said that with all she is going through she can't help but wonder sometimes "Where is God in all this" We bore testimony to her that God is aware of her and her circumstances. He won't leave her or forsake her and he hasn't. I know that. He loves her so much and he wants to help her. I hope we were able to provide her with some comfort that morning. We were able to say a prayer with her and I hope she could feel the spirit.

 

We haven't been able to meet with Velma, Dorisette, Maria, or Lawanda because of spring break (I thought I liked spring break and then I came on a mission and now I think it stinks because everyone is out of town and no one wants to meet... :) ) But we have stayed in contact with all of them and they are doing well.

 

We've been trying really hard to keep working even though it's been a tiring area and we aren't seeing as much immediate success as we want. I've been studying patience a lot lately and I know I certainly could use a bit more patience. This area has proven to be the refiners fire of my mission and its taught me a lot. It has really tested my integrity, and obedience. There have been many instances that have come up where I've been tempted with the option to give up or stay home or use less effort. I've had to make the decision whether or not I want to be a diligent disciple of Christ or a mediocre missionary. And I'll admit sometimes that latter option is tempting and truly is the easier route, I have fallen short and at times been less that I could be, but as a child of God who knows my purpose and carries a firm testimony of his gospel it's not in my cards to give up or have the excuse to slack in my work. That is not what the Lord sent me out here to do and I know it. As a missionary I've repented more now that I ever have in my life. I love this work so much and I don't want to fail the Lord. I want to complete all the work He has for me to do here. I'm trying. Everyday I fall short, but I'm trying. I heard a quote by Dallin H. Oaks this week that hit me powerfully he said, "When you're involved in the work of the Lord the power behind you is ALWAYS greater than the obstacles before you." 

 

I love you all so much and I am so grateful for your love and prayers I have felt them strengthen me!

 

The Kingdom of God or Nothing!

 

Love, Sister Gregson

So to explain these pictures one night when I was over at the Howards house we somehow got on the topic of how they had made fried turkey last thanksgiving. I mentioned that I had never had fried turkey and instantly Brother Howard decided that that was enough reason to make another fried turkey. So the other night the Howards had us over for dinner and made us a full on Thanksgiving meal fried turkey and all. Let me tell you, fried turkey is soooooooooo good. But still nothing compares with your stuffing mom.

These pictures are of that dinner and the second one is the Howard family aka the best family in Tomball!