Rakkaat ystävät,
Such a good week! It has just flown by in such a blur I
hardly remember what happened this week, so I won't really cover too much today.
But there are two incredible people I want to tell you about this week:
The first is U, a woman in her 60s and a referral from a
member in our ward. The member told us a bit about U, especially that there had
recently been a death in the family (straight out of PMG, my friends),
but had asked us that she remain anonymous, so we contacted U as if we
just happened to knock on her door. When she answered the door, at first she
seemed a bit apprehensive, but when we told her we had a message about the
eternal nature of the family and that we will live again after we die, she let
us right in. She was so excited that she could barely speak coherently, and she
told us all about how God has been guiding her life. She told us some pretty
incredible stories about herself and how she came to know that God loved her.
She told us about how her close cousin has recently passed away and how she had
been searching for peace and relief from worries that were weighing on her. I
have never felt so much love so immediately for a person I have only just met.
We testified to her of God's love and taught her about eternal families, and
that she could see her cousin again. We gave her a Book of Mormon and she was
so excited to read it that she actually wanted to read more than the chapter we
had assigned her. We are meeting with her again tomorrow, and I have no doubt
that she will have kept all her commitments. She is amazing!
The second is a young woman, M. She is classmates with our
bishop's wife Sisar L, and was originally interested in the Word of Wisdom. I
mentioned her two weeks ago when we had our first lesson with her, that Sisar L had set up. The last time we met with her, I already felt so good about
her. There was a special Spirit in the room that I hadn't ever noticed
with anyone before. Take 2 was just as good. We had the lesson at Sisar L's
apartment again, and we taught about the Book of Mormon, which M already
actually had because Sisar l had given her one a while back. We talked about
the promise in the Introduction, that if one receives a testimony of the Book
of Mormon, they will know also that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God and that
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the true church of God upon
the earth today. We promised her that she could also know for herself that
Heavenly Father is her Father and that she can have a personal relationship
with Him and that he answers prayers. We asked if M wanted to know these things
for herself, and she answered without hesitation, that yes, she did. The spirit
was so strong in the room just then, and we invited her to be baptized. She
said yes! She didn't want to set a date just yet, but she said perhaps in
January. Her "yes" was the most confident yes I have ever heard, and
we invited her to pray about a day to be baptized so that she could receive the
confirmation for herself. She is incredible and prepared, with a super solid
member support system. She is ready and she is going to make it, I can tell.
It really was an amazing week, and I just want you all to
know how happy I am. This place is amazing. I am so blessed to be in Finland
among the incredible people here aiding in the work of gathering the Lord's
sheep. The Finnish people are so amazing. I'm so blessed to be their friend and
to learn about their culture and live among them. Heavenly Father truly reaches
out to all His children all over the world. His gospel is for everyone, His
love unlimited by oceans and political boundaries, His mercy unbounded by
race, age, or culture. I truly believe that, and have seen it in actuality
time and time again.
With Thanksgiving this week (sorry I skipped over it last week), take the time to think about where your blessings come from. Heavenly Father gives good gifts, and all you have is from Him. I am thankful for my wonderful family who supports me, for my wonderful friends both here and at home, and for the knowledge of my relationship to the Lord and His limitless love and patience. May the Lord bless you all this week, and may you eat lots and lots of turkey!
I love you all! Stay shiny!
Rakkaudella,
Sisar Hillebrant
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