miracles

Thank you for all the emails. I loved every one! I attached a picture from Cayce's baptism. The really tall blonde is my current companion Sis. Brand. The other three sisters were the current sisters in Gaffney. Transfers were this past week. I'm staying in Greenville :)

We've had a lot of trials over the past few weeks, but this week, we've seen so many blessings that I still can't believe they happened! We found 8 new investigators!!!! and 4 of them have a baptismal date. One of the investigators we've been teaching for a couple weeks, Jan, has made leaps and bounds over the past few days. She has a social phobia and is also struggling with the word of wisdom, but she aboslutely loves the scriptures and can't get enough of them. This past week alone she has read about 20 chapters in the Bible and 10 in the Book of Mormon every day!!! We have been reading a chapter with her where ever she left off in the Book of Mormon and they usually tie exactly into what we wanted to teach her and what she needed. We arranged to have the elders come give her a priesthood blessing to overcome the things holding her back. The blessing was simple, but it was powerful and Jan has the faith to let it work in her life. She has such a burning desire to emerse herself in the gospel. We also brought one of the sisters from the ward who is a perfect fit! She has done so much for Jan in two days as she has been lead by the Spirit in knowing how to help her. Jan is now wanting to come to our Book of Mormon class on Wednesday night...huge leap in her phobia!!!! And she is working towards getting baptized on the 26 of May. She is such a miracle!

Yesterday we did nothing but teach teach teach. We had several appointments and got to teach our backups too! We found three very elect people! One is Alisha. She's 17. We knocked into her family earlier this week looking for a less active. We talked to her and her dad while they were grilling their dinner. She is so smart. Her mom actually investigated the church about 20 years ago and is completely supportive with her daughter learning more about it. Her mom said, "It made a lot of sense." The only thing that held her back was doubt. Alisha is excited to learn and find out the truth!

The other two were a mother and daughter. We went to go teach one of our investigators at a member's home, but she canceled last minute. One of the neighborhood kids, Dakota, came by and the member asked if she would like to stay for a while and talk to us. She was only 14 so we walked over to her home to ask her mom, Nora, for permission. Nora was completely fine with it, and then decided to join us. After a few minutes talking with them, Nora told us we were an answer to her prayers over the past week. She grew up baptist but never completely agreed with their doctrines and was feeling like she was alone in her beliefs. Everything we breifly told her about our beliefs rang true to her and she agreed to be baptized! We told her to continue to pray to know that this is true, and she said she wanted to do more than just pray...she committed to read and to come to church! We also briefly introduced the word of wisdom and will go over it more in depth with them tonight. She has been prepared and is so ready to receive the gospel.

Over the last few days I have had such joy in my heart. We have taught and taught and even though we had rough spots, the sorrow was swallowed up by these few miracles. This work is so important. This gospel is so true! I know Christ lives, that He loves us without measure, and he puts us through trials to make us stronger so we will be prepared to handle new and greater things...so we can progress. It all makes so much sense :)

Love you all lots. Have a great week! Trust in the Lord and let Him guide you. He has a plan for us. He can see the whole picture. He knows better than we do. Even in the most trying times, there is purpose, there is hope. The Lord is always near.

Love,

Sister Cottam

humility and faith

Sorry, I accidentally sent that last one before I wrote any more...

I got the amazing privilege to witness another baptism this past Saturday. Cayce was one of my investigators for most of my time in Gaffney. Her husband is not active in church, but the ward informed Sis. Jepsen and I that she had shown some interest in the church. We met her in October of last year and began teaching her. She knew it was all true from the moment she heard the first vision. Her only hold ups were attending church and cigarettes. She struggled to have enough strength to overcome her own fears and weaknesses and take the last steps for baptism. Now, admisdt family troubles, she found the faith to take those last steps, and she entered the waters of baptism! She is such an amazing daughter of God. She refused to do it with out me there. A couple of wonderful members from our ward gave us a ride so we could be there. When Cayce saw me, she called out my name and excitedly hugged me. She was so happy to see me. It was a small and simple service (which is how she wanted it). After she was baptized she told us, " I feel so different."

I didn't realize the affect we can have on people until then. This experience has humbled me. I thought about a story that one of my companions gave me written by a former missionary. It is called "Find Me" and talks about how we had many friends before this life. We each get an assignment for this life. Some of us were blessed to be born into homes where they knew the restored gospel. Others were not. Those who were not assigned to such a family beg of us who are, "Find me. I'll be without those blessings, but I want them. Find me." I have no doubt that Cayce was one of those that I was sent to find. Multiple missionaries have been a part of her life and have helped her along that way, but I was there through most of it, for the longest time. I think it's because for some reason that only He knows, God knew she needed me. That's a very humbling thought. The Lord knows where we are needed, who needs us, who is searching for the gospel, who wants to be found; and we've been given the calling to go where He wants us to go, say what He would like us to say, and do what He needs us to do. We are His tools. There are children waiting for us to open our mouths. We can't afford to not speak up or we might miss a crucial opportunity.

I've been thinking a lot about what humility is this past week. I've been told a couple of times that I'm very humble, but I didn't know exactly what that meant. I can define it in words, but what is it really? I've started creating an answer. Humility is not neccissarily letting everyone else have their way. It's not being quiet and letting others talk. It's a balance. It's a faith in God, an expectation in God. It is literally allowing our will to be swallowed up in the will of the Lord. That doesn't mean being submissive to everyone else, but having such a deep trust in Him and a deep love for Him and for His children on the earth that we are willing to do ANYTHING He asks, even the hard things. For me, that means having the faith to speak up when I am unsure with trust that the Spirit will guide my thoughts. For me it is paying attention to what the person I'm talking to is saying and not on what I should say in reply. For me, it is being willing to do all the hard things, the uncomfortable things, the exhausting things that come with missionary work so that I can be the best servant of the Lord that I can be. It is trying sincerely to discover the Lord's desires for me.

May your week be filled with amazing things! Love you lots!

Love,

Sister Cottam 

baptisms..​.in other places; miracles..​.everywher​e (from Monday, April 16, 2012)

Hey family!

It's been a chilly week but some exciting things have happened. We have a lot of investigators that we're working with right now. The trick is helping them progress...We have had at least one investigator at church every Sunday for the past 3 weeks. That's a record in this area...different investigators, but hey, they're coming! Someone is coming and feeling the Spirit. It seems that what most of our investigators are struggling with right now is simply making time. They have so much going on in their lives and they are having a tough time finding time to fit the gospel in. I think this is a struggle that will be found more and more often as Satan works harder and harder to not neccissarily drown people in sin but distract them so much that they can't give the gospel any thought; they're too busy. It something that we've started warning everyone we teach: Now that you've started learning, Satan is going to throw everything he can at you to distract you, and you have to make the choice of where you will put your priorities. The gospel is so important.

Jessica was baptized this week in the other ward that shares our building. She was a member refferal that our zone leaders gave us, but we realized after the second visit that she is just outside of our area. We transitioned her over to the elders in that ward, but we didn't lose contact. At her baptism, Sis. Brand gave a talk on baptism, and I gave a talk on the Holy Ghost. It was a great day, even though she wasn't technically "our" baptism. I then got the wonderful opportunity to prepare a last minute talk on families for sacrement meeting...good thing we already study 2 hours everyday so that we're prepared when there's only 12 hours notice.

I found out some amazing news this past week. One of my investigators in Gaffney, Cayce, is finally ready to get baptized! But she refused to do it unless I was there...ha! I love her so much. We got permission from President and found a member ride, so this Saturday we get to go back to my old tracting grounds and see her be baptized. I am so excited! She is an amazing daughter of God and my heart is full of joy for the steps she has taken. I also found out that the sisters in Gaffney finally found one of my other previous investigators this past week. His was close to being baptized and then suddenly disappeared a couple months ago. The spirit put them in the right place at the right time. They have started teaching him again, and he is excited to prepare anew for baptism. Miracles are happening great and small all over, and I get to be one of the privaleged witnesses of it all!

Keep on pressin' on. The trials are worth every blessing. Have a great week!

Love,

Sister Cottam

P.S. The Spirit is the 6th sense ;) Don't go anywhere without it :)

P.P.S. Thanks for the jam!

the Spirit

We found a lot of investigators last week. This week we've been trying to help those investigators progress (some have and some haven't) and find others who are also ready for the gospel. It was spring break, so one of our families was out of town. The other family worked late all week, but we got to talk to the husband last night for a few minutes. He was eager to meet with us again and to come to church next week. I can't wait to teach them again.

This week has been one for a lot of reflection. I loved Mom's note at the end of her email this week: "Here I ask-- are we so aware of the Spirit's voice that we immediately react to it?"

In the mission field there is a stark difference from the times you do have the Spirit and the times that you don't. I've let several small things get in my way this transfer as I've struggled to learn the new area, and I finally realized that part of my struggles over the past few weeks have been from a lack of the Spirit. I've let my heart get discouraged; I've doubted; I've let frustration fester; and I've allowed fear to keep me quiet. These things steal away the Spirit, and the Lord's work cannot be done without it. For a long while I wasn't sure why I was struggling or how I could improve, but as I turned to the Lord in sincere prayer and listened closely to the Spirit, little by little he taught me, and I've seen the blessings of following the council I have received.

As I have worked through this past transfer and as I now look back, I can see how even these simple trials of overcoming my weaknesses and dealing with the challenges of learning a new area seem big in the moment, but are exactly the size the Lord needed to make them in order to help me grow. If nothing else, through these growing experiences I have learned how to truly rely on the Lord and the Spirit. I've learned that the souls I've been sent to teach are precious, and the Lord loves them so much. I was sent here for them, not neccessarily for me.

I am so grateful for the priesthood power that was restored again to the earth to run this church and bless our individual lives. I am so grateful for personal revelation. I am so grateful that the Savior suffered for us and then rose again the third day. I am so grateful for this opportunity I have to serve the Lord here in Greenville, South Carolina. We are working with several precious children of God right now, and I can see the Lord working in their lives. The quiet moments when I get to witness the power of the Holy Ghost touch a heart make everything else worth it. I know this work cannot move forward without that divine help, that amazing power.

Keep the Spirit close. Let it be your guide.

Love you lots!

Love,

Sister Cottam

Miracles admist the pollen

I loved general conference! I loved how many of the messages concentrated on family, charity/letting go of contention, and recognizing revelation. All of the sessions zoomed by and I was left wanting more. I guess that's a good thing. Now I get to go back over my notes and study these topics in greater depth. I tested the council to record our impressions last night, and wow, when we have pen and paper in hand to record our impressions, the Spirit gives us exactly what we are seeking. It's like what I learned at the MTC. At one of the devotionals the apostle speaking taught us that we invite the Spirit to teach us when we participate: i.e. pray, write notes, ponder what is said, think of answers to the questions, etc. True doctrine!

Through our dilligence and faith, and to our utter and joyful surprise, we found two families this week! We knocked into both of them. The first, Joey and Sarah and their two sons who are 6 and 2, let us right in even though they were in the middle of eating dinner. After breaking down barriers--getting to know them a little bit--we shared with them the family proclamation and taught the Restoration. They're not completely satisfied with their current church and are eager to see what ours is like. They've been out of town this weekend for a chior competion (Sarah teaches chorus in high school), but they are reading from the Book of Mormon and are planning on definitely being at church next Sunday! The other family is Brian and Niome. We contacted Brian a week ago and set an appointment for this past Saturday. Brian was so prepared to hear us. He has heard anti throughout his life from preachers, etc., but had never been told what was really wrong with the church other than the extra book. As he was praying and reading the bible this past week, he read the last verse of John which says that the earth cannot contain the books that could be written about Christ's doings. He knew then that it was possible that the Book of Mormon could be real scripture! Wow! Niome is open and willing to learn more. They came to the Sunday morning session of conference and enjoyed it.

When we sincerely seek to do the Lord's will and press forward through our trials with faith, the Lord will bless us. I truly gained that testimony this past week.

Oh, and a great tip for dealing with allergies: pray for rain and eat about a teaspoon and a half of local honey everyday...works wonders :)

Love you all lots. Have an amazing week!

Love,
Sister Cottam