FAMILIA!!!! I think every week I get more and more excited to come email so I can hear from you all. I love my family!! The spirit of Elijah has hit me since I've been on my mission and I know that families are sacred!!! So I just love hearing from you all. (and wish I heard from more of you!)
Today also marks 14 months since the day I entered the MTC. Wow! Time hasn't exactly flown by, but I'm still amazed that I'm this far along on my mission. I think I'm just getting more and more tired, though. I'm always yawning and people ask me if I'm tired. I tell that I don't feel extra tired, but that I have the case of eternal yawns. And also someone told me on Sunday that I look tired. XD I can't help it!
I'm going to copy and paste a portion of my email to President Clayton to save time. But it's all good, I would have told you the same things:
"We are getting so busy! We're adding investigators often, and we're trying to help the ones we already have progress. We're also really focusing on getting investigators to church. I'm trying to remember the training you gave us on getting investigators to church. Also, we were so busy this past Friday that we did splits! Sister Sheperd was scared, but she did a fantastic job. And we added a new investigator! Sister Sheperd is super great. Once again we're noticing how the 12 week training program is so applicable to our investigators! This past week we watched all of District 1 about working with ward leaders and planning. It is helping us so much! We usually have super bomb plans for the day and we get stuff done. And this week, right after Elder Ballard talked about following the spirit, we're learning how to teach the gospel of Jesus Christ to people and to follow the promptings of the spirit and teach our investigators what the spirit is. It never ceases to amaze us how the 12 week training program is inspired! I'm grateful for it.
Following up with what Sister Barfuss and I worked on during exchanges, this week I have been thinking a lot about a quote President Uchdorf gave. It is " Love is the measure of our faith, the inspiration for our obedience, and the true altitude of our discipleship." The first line "love is the measure of our faith" really got me thinking! If I feel like I need more love for the area, Sister Sheperd, or myself, then I must need to work on my faith! If love is the measure of my faith, then my faith has been gradually increasing my whole mission. This week we're studying the gospel, which will help me learn more about faith. And I love the idea of teaching the need for faith to all of our investigators! God works by the power of faith, and they can't receive an answer from the spirit until they have faith.
Little miracle to share with you: We have an investigator, Jesse, who passed his baptismal interview before we even got here and had a baptismal date but has been trying to drop us practically since we got here. We fasted for him on Sundaythat he'd realize the need for baptism. We met with him yesterday and shared 2 Nephi 32:8 which talks about the devil teaching a man not to pray. We asked Jesse if it was the devil or the spirit that was leading him in his decisions and we let the spirit teach him. We used silence a lot in this lesson. Jesse felt the spirit work on him and said after a long pause of thinking "I know I need to be baptized, sisters". His hang up is that his mom doesn't want him to join the church because of tithing and other reasons. But we think if we can get him to feel the spirit like that when we meet on Thursday that he will get baptized. Hopefully this month. It was a testimony builder on fasting and teaching by the spirit."
Following up with what Sister Barfuss and I worked on during exchanges, this week I have been thinking a lot about a quote President Uchdorf gave. It is " Love is the measure of our faith, the inspiration for our obedience, and the true altitude of our discipleship." The first line "love is the measure of our faith" really got me thinking! If I feel like I need more love for the area, Sister Sheperd, or myself, then I must need to work on my faith! If love is the measure of my faith, then my faith has been gradually increasing my whole mission. This week we're studying the gospel, which will help me learn more about faith. And I love the idea of teaching the need for faith to all of our investigators! God works by the power of faith, and they can't receive an answer from the spirit until they have faith.
Little miracle to share with you: We have an investigator, Jesse, who passed his baptismal interview before we even got here and had a baptismal date but has been trying to drop us practically since we got here. We fasted for him on Sundaythat he'd realize the need for baptism. We met with him yesterday and shared 2 Nephi 32:8 which talks about the devil teaching a man not to pray. We asked Jesse if it was the devil or the spirit that was leading him in his decisions and we let the spirit teach him. We used silence a lot in this lesson. Jesse felt the spirit work on him and said after a long pause of thinking "I know I need to be baptized, sisters". His hang up is that his mom doesn't want him to join the church because of tithing and other reasons. But we think if we can get him to feel the spirit like that when we meet on Thursday that he will get baptized. Hopefully this month. It was a testimony builder on fasting and teaching by the spirit."
As you can tell from my email to President, Elder Ballard spoke to us this week! We heard from him just yesterday. Like last time he was here in July, he shook all our hands. A good portion of my mission friends are younger than me and haven't met him yet, so they were all excited. I also saw some of my friends from my last zone and Elder Arntsen from the valley! That was fun. Elder Ballard mostly talked about following the spirit. I know it's so important to follow the spirit. I'm working on it.
That's about all I've got. The work is good! We are so busy!!! The time from last Tuesday to this Tuesday seemed to go by so fast. We're already in week 6 of the transfer!
I LOVE THE GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST! I know it's true. Amen.
-Sister Audrey Michelle Bishop
p.s. LOTS OF LOVE! Happy mother's day to all the mothers. =]
pic 1 - my district (not in order, sorry) Elder Harrison, Elder Corum, Elder Nielsen, Elder Augusto, Sister Sheperd and myself.
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