Happy Holidays! Merry Christmas! What a great week here in Modesto. First off, I would love to say how amazing it was to be here on my
mission to celebrate Christmas. I am just so overwhelmed at the love I
have for Jesus Christ. I was opening presents with my companion, and we
were so happy to see all the wonderful things we had received. But I had
a thought, and I know that the greatest gift we have is our Lord and
Savior Jesus Christ. I just felt the spirit so much and I know that he
lived and died for all of us here. I know that he lived a perfect life,
and we can all strive to live one. We are not perfect, but we can sure
try!! Christmas Day was really special: After a beautiful Church Service, we were able to talk to our families for 45 minutes and that was so wonderful to see them and feel of their love and support. I am so thankful for my family and all their support. We also went to two different
hospitals (one was a medical center, the other was a nursing facility). We visited a cute elderly couple that had no where to go for Christmas and
we got to see our less active members. They were all so happy and during
all of the visits we all got teary eyed from reading about the Savior's
birth in the book of Luke. I will never forget that day. I felt the
spirit so strong just testify to me of my Savior. And how much our
Heavenly Father loves each of us, that H
e sent His son.(John 3:16-17) I
hope you all have a wonderful week! Don't forget that we can have the
spirit of Christmas with us ALWAYS!
Love,
Sister Guilott
We went to the McHenry Mansion last week! It was beautiful and reminded me of Dowton Abby!
This is such a wonderful time of year! And I am soooo excited to be spending it here in Modesto!!
This week was a great week! Attitude makes a HUGE difference :D
This past week, it got down to the low 40's (yes.... I am now acclimated) and I thought it was FREEZING!! Hahaha! I am not a Utah girl anymore! But it was an adventure biking in the cold!
This past week I have seen so many miracles around me that I would love to share!
One was we were going to go get a bit to eat, we were deciding whether or not to go. But we decided to go! And then some kind man paid for our food! It made our day! Then we saw some homeless people, they asked if we had left overs... WE DID! And we gave it to them. It's so sad to see people suffer here; that is why I am so grateful for service!
Another story: We (Sister Bell and and I) were biking in the rain and some kind man rolled down his window and gave us a topical guide of scriptures from the internet! We were so grateful... Until we read it..... IT WAS ANTI-MORMON LITERATURE. Me and Sister Bell were shocked! I was just shocked how people would do that... But it made me think. The man was probably thinking we were so confused and wanted to try to help us! Well, I guess that is sweet of him... BUT!! I KNOW THAT THIS GOSPEL IS TRUE :) And that we are not confused!! :D And that was just really scary but funny at the same time someone would do that!
Another story from this week was that we (after an appointment fell through at 7pm) started knocking on doors. We then were walking on the sidewalk when we heard someone singing. It turned out to be some of our AWESOME members in our ward! We waved to them and they told us to come with them and sing! SO WE DID!! It was so fun and that just made me so happy. These members were just doing it to random houses too, giving away yummy treats they had made. Yep. That was super awesome.
But. This is the time in the season to be doing this: to serve. But, it makes me realize how we can be doing this ALL YEAR LONG!!! :D And I just want to be a missionary for the rest of my life. I seriously LOVE IT. I know I say this a lot, it is hard. BUT IT IS SO WORTH IT.
I love you all so much!! I hope you have a wonderful Christmas season! Remember, this time is to remember our Savior Jesus Christ. I am so grateful for His birth, and for Him to be able to deliver us. God loves you all so much!
What a crazy week! We actually had our lovely Sister Gibbons
transfer. She will do well in her new area and I enjoyed the time we got to spend together, even though it was short and sweet. One thing certain on a mission: lots of change always. :)
This week, it was a great week! We have been teaching our
investigator Michael and he is getting more and more interested! But he is slow to commit ... Patience is a virtue, and we are showing
him why it is important to do things like pray, read the Book of
Mormon, and go to church. A wonderful family from our ward invited
him over to their house for a lesson, and it was AMAZING. I am just
SOOOO grateful for people being so willing and open to helping out
missionaries and doing what the Lord wants them to do!
I want to share a story from this week with a lot of honesty: After a long week on Saturday, while
biking in the rain, I got really down. Its hard to stay positive at times when you are cold, wet, riding a bike and no one seems to want to listen. I started thinking about my
decisions of being on a mission and my purpose in being here, with all I had given up. We had gotten into no homes the whole day, we were
soaking wet, it was very windy and cold, and I was miserable. I started to get VERY down on myself. When we
got home, I was close to tears. I thought to myself :"Why am I here? What am I doing that is
helping anyone? Is this really what I am supposed to be doing?" Then, I had the prompting to
pray. So, started to pray. I felt a comfort
come over me, but I was still feeling down. I went to sleep that night. The next
day, we went to church. AND OH BOY. I received so many answers that
day. And so many people came up to us saying how grateful they were for
us. And we were even mentioned in a lesson in Relief Society. I knew
then that God was telling me that everything is going to be okay. I
learned that humility is a HUGE part of this work. And that we need to keep on pushing and moving forward.
I don't know why I had to share that. But all I know is that, yes: missions are hard. They make you uncomfortable. They make you feel like
the whole world is out to get you. You will want to give up. But this will NEVER compare to what Our Savior Jesus Christ had to go
through. He bore ALL of our sins, pains, weaknesses, short comings, and
so much more. But He did it because He loved us, He understood the plan
of happiness, and He knew it was his Father's will and He loved his
Heavenly Father SO MUCH, He did that. So He completed the Atonement, and
died for us. Look at the result now. So, when you are wanting to give up
or you think no one notices you or anything, just remember that Jesus
Christ knows exactly what you are going through. Know that this is
supposed to be hard, because God wants you to learn and grow. "He takes
us as we are and makes us more than we ever imagined." And this is what the season is all about. He is here with us always to "Light the World."
I am so grateful to be here. I know I am suppose to be here. Satan
is real, but we have the power to stop him from anything. I can know when to get on my knees and pray. I am so
grateful for this gospel. I know that it is true. I know it, and I can
not EVER deny it. I love my Savior so much, He is the light and life of
my world. And the light and the life in our world today. I know that
things will get better, we have to have faith and hope for good things
to come.
I love you all and hope you have a wonderful week. Enjoy the Christmas weather!
This week went by so quickly that I gasped when I saw it was
another Preparation Day today! We have a lot to do today, so I apologize my post will be short. But here is a miracle from this week that was
REALLY NEAT! :)
My companions and I were walking down the road, after having an
investigator tell us she wasn't interested anymore. So we were a little
down. We were walking and all of the sudden we walk by this man. We
decided to talk to him, and so we did! We shared the "Light The World" church message and he loved it and asked if we had more. Right then, my awesome
companion told about the restoration in under a minute. The man was
stunned and asked:"Okay. I need to learn more. Right now! Here! There is a park
over here. I want to learn more!" So we all walked together, with him asking
about life and religion and we taught him the restoration. He was very
interested and insisted we came the next day to teach him more. SO WE
DID! He is loving the message, is understanding it and believes it.
God
has a plan for all of us. Even if you are going through a rough place,
there is ALWAYS something better around the corner. I know that is true.
And I know that the power of the Holy Ghost is real, and that opening
your mouth REALLY does make a difference in someone's life. I invite you
all to open your mouths, because you could be
helping someone, and you are always a touch point in someone's life.
LOVE YOU ALL!! God loves you :)
Sister Guilott
My cute companions and I eating YUMMY pupusa's at a sweet restaurant!!
AND my companions are ADORABLE and SOOO POWERFUL :)
Another transfer is here and it's Christmas time!! I am so happy to
be here in "my new home" for the holidays! There is a new spirit here now that the holidays have arrived and
everyone is very cheerful! I have a picture with Sister Bell and I with our new companion from this transfer, Sister Gibbons!! She is from Colorado and is the perfect addition to our
companionship! We are lucky to all be together in this wonderful ward during this holiday season!
Sister Bell, Sister Gibbons and Me :)
Before transfers ... last time together! Our "serious" sides
This week, we have been getting the "Light the World" initiative out!!
EVERYONE!! GET ON TO mormon.org RIGHT NOW!! There is a wonderful video you can watch.
It shares two scriptures which I love, John 8:12 and Matthew 5:14.
They both talk about Christ being a light, and also how we can be a
light. The website also includes an advent calendar, which is awesome! You should check it out!
We need to remember the real reason behind the season. This season is the time for us to be like Christ,
and remember all He did on the this earth as He taught and served. I am just so
grateful for this time we can have an "attitude of gratitude" and we can
do "service for a purpose" this holiday.
I love you all! Please go on to the the website and look up the "Light the World," and I know that it will really help you this season.
Have a wonderful week! Sorry this is short, but know I love you all and am thankful to be a missionary in Modesto at thsi time!
Hello! I am sorry that I don't have much time to write today. We got transfer calls yesterday and I will be staying here in my area. I can't believe I will get to be here for eight months at least (that is how long it will be until the next transfers). But I know that God wants me here and I am thrilled! There is still a lot of work to do. We will have one change: We are getting another companion. Sister Gibbons! She will be moving in with us and we will be in a tripanionship. We have lots to do to get our apartment ready for another person so it is a busy day. I am grateful to be in my mission "home ward" for the holidays. I am grateful for all my wonderful family and friends in my life that bring me so much happiness and I am grateful for God's plan of happiness. It is the most amazing thing that we can always have hope. I am thankful for my Savior. I am thankful to serve a mission. It's tough but I love it: the people, the trials and the joy. It's amazing! I hope you all have a wonderful day. And a wonderful THANKSGIVING! Love to all, Sister Guilott
This past week we had the amazing opportunity to go over our Christmas Initiative for this holiday season. The theme is "Light the World" and it gets me so excited! I just can't believe the holidays are coming up so quickly. I am seeing Christmas trees up, lights are up, stores have new Christmas decorations.... CHRISTMAS!!! And it's not even thanksgiving. So. I would like to dedicated this email for all the things I am grateful for in my life.
First off, there is a scripture in Doctrine and Covenants, Section 78, verse 17-19 and it reads:
17 Verily, verily, I say unto you, ye are a little children, and ye have not as yet understood how great blessings the Father hath in his own hands and prepared for you;
18 And ye cannot bear all things now; nevertheless, be of good cheer, for I will lead you along. The kingdom is yours and the blessings thereof are yours, and the riches of eternity are yours.
19 And he who receiveth all things with thankfulness shall be made glorious; and the things of this earth shall be added unto him, even an hundred fold, yea, more.
I love this scripture so much. It just shows that when you have a thankful heart, you will be made GLORIOUS. I wanted to make a list of what I am grateful for and they are as follows:
My family here in Modesto, I love the people here and they just inspire me so much.
My companion, Sister Bell. I have learned SO MUCH from her and am so grateful we are together, learning and growing.
My wonderful companion, Sister Bell, and our wonderful omelets!
My trainer Sister Rugg, I have learned so much from her as well.
My fellow missionaries in my district and my zone. They help you with so much.
Sisters in my zone (minus the Hermanas)
The California Modesto Mission. It is seriously the best mission FOR ME. I know that God is real, because I was called here to serve.
My mission president, President Palmer. He is truly inspired and I learn so much from him and his example.
His wonderful wife, Sister Palmer. She is such a delight and a wonderful missionary.
All the people I have had the opportunity to meet and be a part of their lives and I have been able to see the changes they have made for be happy.
I am so grateful for this gospel. I know it is true.
I am SO grateful for my family back in Utah, I love them and I am so happy we will be an eternal family.
I am grateful for all the wonderful family and friends in my life that bring me so much happiness.
I am so grateful for God's plan of happiness; it is the most amazing thing we have to give us hope.
But I am so especially grateful for my Savior. And His wonderful example. He is my older brother.
I am grateful for the sacrifice He did for all of us, which was to perform the Atonement.
I am grateful that He knows what everyone is going through.
I love you all. I am grateful for you. I hope you all have a wonderful week! :)
Love,
Sister Guilott
I guess I am extremely allergic to mosquitoes. I am thankful for Benadryl!
Daily Planning Meeting . . . And the apples we got from people that day!
No pictures today so mom got to include a favorite! :)
Hello Wonderful World!!
I can't believe I hit my 7 months out on my mission this past week. WOW! I look back to where I was before and looking at myself
now and I can see so much change and that is all due to my Heavenly
Father and how He has helped me see my true potential as His daughter. I
am seriously so grateful to have has the opportunity to come out on a
mission. I see all the wonderful people around me and I just feel
so much joy. I know if I would have been home, I would not have gotten
this far or changed (for the good) so much. I know and feel my Saviors
love.
This week was a week full of wonderful member present lessons. Our
investigators are progressing slowly yet surely. I am so grateful for
them, and they make me learn the attribute of patience and listening with my
heart, mind and ears. We had a lesson with one of our investigators
this week, and we were learning about the Plan of Salvation. Our investigator would say
many funny comments, but at the end of the lesson, he knew that it was
true. Just learning about the Plan of Salvation is really neat, because
so many people have the questions of "where did I come from?" and "why am I
here?" and "where am I going after this life?" And when you teach
someone who learns this for the first time, it is SO EXCITING. They
feel hope in their lives and they are able to understand their purpose
and potential in this life and the next life to come.
I was able to go on exchanges this past week! I went to Spanish
work AGAIN!! I don't know why I always get to go Spanish, but I seriously LOVE
IT!!!!!! We had so many neat experiences! I was able to pray in Spanish without ANY NOTES!! I felt so proud. And I also got to read in espanol
and didn't do too bad! And there was such a neat experience I was able
to have while I was on exchanges. We were teaching a family (and at the time I did not know they were all
investigators; Hermana didn't tell me so I thought they were members with maybe one investigator.) They asked me to pray and read
and I was very willing and open to try. I was terrified but I knew that
God would help me. And He did. (After all, I thought they were members) During the lesson, everyone was reading
in Spanish and I just felt the spirit so strong. It was so neat to not
be completely understanding it, BUT I knew it was true by the spirirt.
So after my companion spoke, I asked her if I could say something. She
translated and I just shared how I know everything that was being said
was true from the Holy Ghost. The family stopped and stared. They
started to ask us about the gospel and about missionary work. Then the
mom looked at me. And asked me why I came on a mission. I then bore my
testimony on everything. And I have never felt the spirit so strong in
my life. I cried and spoke as much spanish as I could and they all
cried. They all committed to go to church. That was seriously such a
neat moment that I am going to treasure for the rest of my life.
Want to hear one crazy experience we had this week? I won't say
names... But I think I had the craziest lesson of my mission this past
week: We met with one of our investigators who is progressing and is very
interested. He always has many questions and he gets deep into the
doctrines of theBible and the Book of Mormon. We had a lesson before
with him, and the doctrines he was asking about were so complex that we
needed help. Also because he was getting through the Book of Mormon so
quickly! So we (Sister Bell and I) prayed about who could join us in the
lesson as a member present. We got the prompting to bring our Stake
President (who happens to be in our ward and always offers) to come! We knew he was so busy but we felt he was the one to ask, so we did and he was excited to come! He is a very inspired
man who has a broad knowledge of the gospel. So we knew itt was going to be perfect.
That day, we were praying before we went into the lesson. And there was
a strange feeling that came over me. I knew that something was going to
happen. So we knocked on our investigator's door, he opened up the door
quickly. The times we have been there before, he was kind and open. This time, he was very
scattered minded and not in the right mindset. We all sit down and our
investigator quickly get out his notes and was very frustrated. We
continued to pray and read with him, but he just kept going off on a Bible
bash. Instead of reading the Book of Mormon, he was "tearing" it apart
and trying to prove it false. Thankfully, our Stake President was able to
be patient and gave some knowledgeable answers. I was so glad he was there with us. Our investigator did
not like these answers at all. He stared to stand up and shout. We all
were silent. Until I felt the spirit prompt me to say something.... So I
said in a kind voice:"We are here to not take away anything you know.
We are here to bring you the good news of the fullness of the gospel of
Jesus Christ. We know as you pray, you can receive an answer." He calmed
down, he said a prayer saying that our church was full of lies and to
help us to see that we needed to be humbled. Then we left. There was a
scary spirit of contention in that home. Right after leaving his home, the spirit came back. Boy. CRAZY. But I am glad that happened. It made me
realize how lost some people are and they are not willing to change or
have a open heart. Lesson learned. And how thankful I was that Sister Bell and I had not gone there alone, but had followed the Spirit to take along our wonderful Stake President.
All I can say now is that I know that I have gotten my own confirmation
that this gospel is true. That the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints is the church on this earth with all the complete truth. I know
that the Holy Ghost will come to us and help us know the things we are
in need of knowing. I know that Joseph Smith was a prophet and he was
the one to restore the church back on the earth today. I know that the
Book of Mormon is the word of God, and if anyone reads from it and
ponders it in their hearts that they will know it as well. I know that
Jesus Christ lives.
Have a wonderful week everyone! I love you all!! Sorry, no pictures this week... BUT I will get some next week!
Happy Halloween! Hope you all have a wonderful fun Halloween and stay away from anything suspicious. Especially clowns, right?
It's beautiful here in Modesto!
I have to admit, this week was a tough one. But God gives us these experiences to try our faith and to help us reach out to Him for help. I am grateful for the chance to grow and rely more on God as we do His work here as missionaries! Here is a quick sum up of what happened this week:
Two of our investigators dropped us. They even had us over and prayed for us saying, "Dear God, please help the girls not feel like they are failures ..." as they said goodbye to us. But I can say that we were able to get very good progress out of one of our investigators, Sister Harris. I seriously love her so much. Something cute about her is that she LOVES Joseph Smith. She loves it when we talk about him or she sees a picture/painting of him. She is awesome. She has felt the Spirit more than ever and has come to Church twice and loves it. We believe she could be baptized by the end of the month and we are trusting God and His timing. Also, patience is something needed in my life, so God is giving the opportunity to exercise that.
We love this wonderful sister, Sister Poye! She makes us happy!
A cool experience this week: we were at church yesterday and we were in a class with Sister Harris learning about the importance of scripture study. I was listening and pondering the things being taught. I then began to pray in my heart, asking God why it had taken Sister Harris so long to get this far without getting baptized, and asking if the reason she has not accepted baptism was because I was not a good missionary. These thoughts led me to feel bad and discouraged with myself. Then at that very moment, a slide popped up in a PowerPoint in the lesson with Alma 36, with the very scripture I had read that morning with the phrase "trust in God" and I knew at that moment God heard me and it was personally an answer for me. It cheered me up and reminded me that God loves us all and is mindful of our hearts and needs.
We also asked Sister Harris at the end of the lesson if she would come to church next week. She said she was going to go to another church she is investigating. We were patient and respectful and said she would be missed. Later that day we had dinner with our Ward Mission Leader who had picked up Sister Harris that day for church and then taken her home. (We ride our bikes to and from church). He said that after a long silence in the car while he took her home, she had told him she had decided to come back and go with us. We are praying for her and excited for this next week.
Frozen Yogurt
Riding home with dinner is a challenge . . .
I am grateful to be out here learning and growing. I love everything about my mission. It is the hardest thing I have ever done, but I am so grateful that I chose to be here. I know that I couldn't have grown or learned so much about my purpose and God's love for all of us anywhere else. I am so happy to see the changes for good in my life already from serving a mission. I know that this gospel is true. And I know that when you trust God and go out of your comfort zone and endure to the end, that there will be miracles. I love you all!
Sister Guilott
Happy Halloween from Missy the dog!
They delivered a mattress on a rainy day so we had to dry it out . . .
I am
just in awe and "I stand all amazed at the love Jesus offers me..." For
this past week, it truly has been a week of miracles. This week, I did
have a bad cold but patience is a virtue and when you are being obedient
and have a positive attitude, the world just seems like a better
place!! The first day, Monday, we had two member present lessons and
that just started off our week fantastically. The week just went
beautifully after that... There are no words really that can describe
the amazing things that have happened this week. I know they are from
God, and patience does pay off!! Here is some information about some of our investigators right now:
Keith: We were not able to meet with him this week, but we are trying and being persistent!
Robert: He had to reschedule our lesson with him, but he is super interested to
learn more! We are on Gospel of Jesus Christ and we are praying that he
will be able to commit to a baptism date. He is super understanding and
humble while giving these lessons.
Kathleen, Jackie, Sarah: No contact this week; they had busy schedules :( But we will keep trying!!
Irene: OH
MY GOODNESS!! She is doing fantastically!! She is reading the Book of
Mormon and is coming to know more and is growing and has so much faith!
We brought our member (who was a convert of five years) to the lesson,
and that helped bring the spirit so much!! The member was able to
describe his conversion story and bore testimony of how the Book of
Mormon is true and Irene loved it. AHHHH!!! It was so cool!
Sister
Jannie Harris: Okay... we let her simmer in the "pot" for a while. We recently went back, and the spirit prompted us to teach her about tithing (with a
return missionary as a member present came!) and then she told us she wanted
to come to church 2 TIMES IN A ROW. THAT IS HUGE. Because she would
always go one week to our church, then the next week to her church. On Friday, our ward mission leader came over to share a lesson about the
restoration. Sister Harris felt the spirit so strong and our leader was
SO INSPIRED. MEMBERS ARE THE SECRET TOOL TO MISSIONARY WORK!!! Then!!
She went to church on Sunday and felt the spirit so strong. She called us twice
yesterday to say that she can't stop thinking about church and has been
"thinking." "Thinking"= wanting to join. She said it will take her a
month. AHHHHHHH! PRAYING SO HARD FOR HER!!! She is getting there!!
Rita: SHE IS A MIRACLE!! We had received a referral telling us to go to her
house and give her a Book of Mormon. She let us in with such love and
joy! She then told us how she had her cable guy fix her tv, and while he was there, she asked what religion he was from.... This cable man (who ever he is) is my
hero. He told her all about The Book of Mormon, Nephi, Plan of
Salvation, Eternal families, and etc. She was so excited to be able to
receive the Book of Mormon. She was really neat, she would pause some
moments, then would say: "Sorry, I was asking God if this is right, and I
am waiting for an answer" AND GOD IS SO REAL. He was able to tell her
to continue to meet with us. We asked her if she wanted to come to
church, she said she was busy. Then on Sunday.... We got a call at
8:10 a.m, and she said God told her to come to church! We quickly found her a ride! The sacrament meeting was fantastic, with our ward mission leader
speaking and a missionary leaving speaking as well. She loved it and
wants to come back next week. She is golden. She is so in tune and we
feel really good about her!
Doug
and Maggie: He is a really neat guy! We found him fixing a wrecked car
and asked him where he got that car. He said that he survived from
crashing in that car. AND BOY, from seeing that car, it was a miracle
he survived. Well, we were inspired to ask him about God and he seemed
really interested. He has a daughter Maggie who is a bright 6 year old,
and we got to teach them. He felt the spirit and he would get emotional
at some points of the lesson. We asked him what would it mean to him if
he knew this was all true. He said, if I knew it was true, I would be
the first person to come to church every Sunday! He is awesome!! He wasn't able to come to church due to other commitments, but we are praying for him to know it is true. But we are meeting with him again and invited him to
our ward activity "trunk or treat" and Maggie seemed really excited. He
has great potential!!
This just has been a week of miracles and I am so grateful to see the Lord at work! I hope you all have a fantastic week!!
I LOVE YOU!
Sister Guilott
This is what happens when there is a HUGE spider on the ceiling, your
companion has a nerf gun, and you have do not have a dinner for that
night... You practice "targeting and shooting down the adversary" ;)
Wow. What a crazy week!! Being here for so long, it is really fun
to see change all around me. Especially in the weather and the nature.
Trees are finally changing, people are still planting flowers here and
there is NO SNOW. haha. I love it. This week we had some pretty awesome
times. Me and Sister Bell and I were able to teach Robert
about the Plan of Salvation We were lucky to have a wonderful woman from the ward come and teach with us and it was great! He understood everything and kept saying: "it
makes sense!" and we were just thrilled. And having a wonderful member with us WAS
INCREDIBLE. Members really make a HUGE difference when you are teaching.
Honestly, I feel like members are better teachers than us missionaries.
TO have that second witness is SOOO NEEDED. So anyone out there who is
reading this... I am giving you an invitation to.... GO HELP THE
MISSIONARIES!! Find them people to teach!! YOU ARE THE 2ND BEST TOOL IN
MISSIONARY WORK!! The first one is the Spirit.
This week we also FOUND OUR INVESTIGATOR FINALLY!! we have been looking for him. His name is
Lawrence and we were SUPER excited to finally meet him. He is awesome
and he is so ready to learn more! Now all we need to do is to teach him
and help him more come unto Christ, and the Spirit will do the rest!
I love you all so much!! I hope you have a wonderful day!!
-Sister Guilott
No one wanted to get the scary bug...So I did! I am my father's daughter!
At a thrift store helping out. Halloween costumes?
Right outside our apartment; Finally, some cooler weather!
Hello World!
One transfer is gone... Another arrives. And how glorious it is to
have change and to be able to accept what God has placed before all
of us! I AM truly grateful for Our Savior Jesus Christ. With transfers approaching, I was so
nervous (isn't every missionary?) about transfer calls. But I knew it would be God's will. I got out my
ukulele, and started to play some church hymns. I loved "Be still my
soul." I found so much peace from that song, and I knew that everything was
going to be okay. And... I am SO happy to say that ME AND SISTER BELL
WILL BE STAYING together in our area!!!
This week was a great week! We were able to teach three new investigators! Here are the details:
-Robert is a man in his later years, and he is very interested in a
woman in our ward. She told him that she wanted to have religion be
centered in her life. And how she wanted to marry someone in the temple.
That really struck his heart. So we were able to teach him and he was very understanding
and open! It was a great lesson, and the spirit was so strong. The only
thing he is struggling with is coming to church. We are praying for
that. But he is very kind and wants to be able to make these changes in
his life. I hope he has the desire for himself to change and see the blessings that will come.
-Keith is also man in his later years, He was a referral from a man
in Ceres. A couple of weeks ago we gave him a Book of Mormon and he
told us he would read it all. When we came back, he was so interested
and had many questions! We came back again and started teaching him when his
friend came over and wanted to Bible bash. We said nothing... THEN
another friend came over, who used to be a Priest/Minister to a church
that wanted to Bible bash as well... It was very hard, but one of my favorite quote about this is by Bruce McConkie which says: "Never
bash, never bash, never bash." So Keith noticed we were saying nothing,
and he told us we could come over another time. He would set a timer for
30 minutes and promised they would all say nothing and listen... So we are
meeting with him one more time to see if he truly has a desire... But we
will see.
-Kathleen, Jackie (Kathleen's mother), and Sarah are all living
together. BEST PEOPLE EVER!!!! Oh my goodness. Kathleen is so prepared
by the Lord. We taught them the Restoration and THE SPIRIT WAS SO
STRONG!!!! Everyone was discussing and very engaged to the lesson. Me
and Sister Bell were seriously in Heaven. They all were so cute, they
wanted to know who our prophet was and they want to meet him. ;) And
Kathleen got on right away to lds.org and watched Pres. Monson's talk "I believe." She is very interested.
Kathleen and Robert have accepted the invitation to be baptized, but we
felt prompted to wait for a date. We will ask them this next week, and
invite them to pray about it. THIS IS THE WORK AND CHRIST IS ALWAYS IN
THE LEAD AND HELPING HIS SERVANTS!! :)
The work is hastening and the Lord is always at the lead!! I am so
grateful to be here one more transfer and HOPE TO BE HERE FOREVER!!!! :)
I love you all and hope you have a great day! Here are some fun pictures!! BYE
Sister Guilott
Our old district before transfers! Awesome people here!
Look! A "fork" in the road!
From my sweet companion. She loves to make us muffins!
We bought matching $4 sunglasses! California Missionaries!
GENERAL CONFERENCE!!!!!! AHHHH! It was incredible! Holy Cow. I loved it.
If any of you were not able to watch it or don't know what it is... YOU
NEED TO WATCH IT. I felt the spirit SO STRONG and it made me realize
how much God loves us. While watching, I felt the Spirit be able to
testify to me that we do have a prophet on the earth today. His name is
Thomas S. Monson, I sustain him and love him so much. And apostles
are here today as well as prophets, seers, and
revelators. It's so true!
I can feel it, and I have been able to pray about it. And I know that
it is true.
This week was an eventful week. I will do bullet points because
there is so much (and I don't have a lot of time for computer time):
We met a man named Josiah who was so kind to us. We were able to
ask him about God and he said he would love to grow more to get closer
to God. Then we met with him two days later, he was able to feel the
Spirit so strong. We are meeting with him this next week, me and Sister
Bell are very excited to see him again! It is said that people you meet
are "prepared by the Lord" and HE DEFINITELY IS.
We made muffins and didn't know how to get them to church since we had no bags or paper plates. So we improvised!
We were talking to one of our neighbors and they told us their
neighbors downstairs would be interested in hearing our message. We went
down, and a WONDERFUL woman named Irene opened the door and hugged us
saying COME IN! She was raised Catholic, but has been taught before from
missionaries. We were able to talk about God and His love for us. And
she told us to come back next week! We then got a text from the member a
couple hours later, saying how she talked to Irene and Irene wants a
Book of Mormon and was so happy! THE GOSPEL BRINGS JOY! I know that is
true. And I am SO GRATEFUL for our member for being so missionary
minded. I invite all of you out there who are members, INVITE INVITE
INVITE!!! Help us missionaries out here! :) We know that you have such a
power, and we need that!
We met with one of investigators... And after seriously 6 months
of meeting with her and having two baptism dates, she told us she wasn't
interested anymore. Instead of wanting to be angry, mad, or so
disappointed... I felt really at peace. I knew that God has a plan for
her and that this wasn't the time she is suppose to accept. I love this
investigator so much and know that God loves her so much. But I am
grateful for the opportunity to have been able to be apart of her life
and been able to see the gospel bless her in ways she would not have
been able to see.
We found our old investigator William! He hasn't been home for a
while, but we found him! He told us he wanted to change and be
righteous! We were really excited for him, and we are hoping he still
has this desire in a couple of days. He has had a tough life, but has
always been able to find God in his life. And I just love applying that
to my life, of trying to see God's hand in mine.
Me and Sister Bell have just had a blast this week. We have grown
so much. And we just hope we get to spend one more transfer together. :)
We made a gross smoothie!
I love you all so much! I love my mission with all my heart and never want to leave.
I love this gospel and know that God is real. I can truly feel the Savior's love for his
GOd's children and can feel it in my own life. I hope you all can feel that as well.
Have a wonderful week! Know that I am praying for all of you!
Love, Sister Guilott :)
Our muffins and original way to get them to church!
Trying to be safe from the crazy in our neighborhood . . . BARRICADE!
It rained today! First time since APRIL! We got to wear our rain jackets our mom's got for us. . . Thank you MOM :)
