mission-wide conference: faith

We have several amazing investigators right now. We had 4 investigators at church!!!!! that's a record! One is Kayla. We met her several weeks ago, but she had some health issues and hadn't been able to make it to church yet. Even though most of her family is anti, she has a strong desire to change her life and live for the Lord so she can raise her children up right. She is so strong! Two of them are friends of members and have already been coming to church for a long while, Hailey and Chelsea. We were finally able to set up appointments with them and teach them. They are both on date! The spirit they have already felt at church has prepared them to take the steps to make covenants with God. Hailey is 11. A couple of young girls in her neighborhood are members and invited her to come with them several months ago. Chelsea works with a soon-to-be-missionary. She's been coming for almost 3 months. We had dinner at the member's home two weeks ago and taught her the plan of salvation (the family had started to discuss it with her the week before). We gave her a Book of Mormon and invited her to read it. She is already done with 2nd Nephi! I can tell that she has felt the power of this book and sincerely wants it be true and to know that this is Christ's church. She is nervous about baptism, but I can see how the Lord has prepared her!

We had a mission-wide conference this past weekend with Elder Gonzalas and Elder Giddons of the 70's. What was taught there was exactly what we needed. They emphasized faith to act and using the Book of Mormon in every teaching and finding opportunity. Our mission is one of the highest finding missions, but on average, we are having to find twice as many investigators to get our baptisms than other missions are. The key to fixing that ratio: more powerful teaching. The keys to more powerful teaching: faith, the Holy Ghost, and the Book of Mormon.

I was reminded that everything in this work stems on the faith to act, in the missionaries and especially in our investigators. If we never speak up they will never know what God has to offer. If they don't act, they will never receive a witness. The Book of Mormon was saved specifically for OUR day, when we would face challenges no other generation has. It is the evidence we have that Christ has restored His church again to the earth. The church relies on this witness. I felt the power of the Book of Mormon in my own life and am grateful for the guidance to use it in every finding and teaching situation. I didn't fully understand before how key it is to conversion.

I am so grateful for the difficult times I have had in life that refine my heart and make it more ready to accept the Lord's will over my own. There is still more to do, more to learn, more to overcome, and more people to find and teach and baptize. I know these will come with time as I serve the Lord with all my heart, trust in Him, and do all I can to have and follow His Spirit. Without the spirit, ye shall not teach... If you never have the faith of the brother of Jared to ask, you will never see the finger of the Lord...

Have a wonderful week yall!

Love,

Sister Cottam