12/2/2013 Miracles and Thanksgiving

Hey family,

I want to let you know about the incredible miracles the Lord is giving us in our mission.  We had a goal this year of 1000 baptisms in the whole mission.  To achieve this, we set a goal of 110 baptisms in November and 98 in December. We usually send a text to the zone when someone accepts a baptismal date, and I have never seen so many BD texts in my life.  Baptismal miracles are happening all over the place! We are working so hard as a mission, and the Lord is blessing us.  This past week with Thanksgiving was a little weird for working.  It was like all of our investigators postponed with us until after the holidays, and I felt like all of our members who would feed us for Thanksgiving left town too.  So we were without Thanksgiving dinner plans until the night before when one of the nonmember mothers of a less active offered to cook us Thanksgiving.  Then a member out of our area offered, and then the relief society president offered.  I've never been stuffed the point of such pain before in my life!  Good thing we rode like 20 miles on our bikes that day.  That night, without realizing it I prayed, "Gracias por la comida que nos comieron." Mi and mi companera burst out laughing when we realized what I'd said, "Thanks for the food that ate us."  :D The dinner with the nonmember family was so wonderful!  We got to share a scriture about how the Nephites gave thanks, then we ended up finding their need to know if God really does exist, so we shared personal experiences and testified about faith.  I really admire the mom, she stays close to God and is a really good example for her wayward sons.  I so hope we can work with them more this coming week.  Dinner with the member family outside our area was wonderful as well.  The family had invited 2 nonmember co-workers and 6 missionaries.  The Elders gave such a powerful lesson, and we talked a lot about the gospel.  She is a super good cook.  I contributed a green jell-o fluff salad that was divine also.  P.S. I'm really learning how to cook! I've invented all sorts of things with onion soup packets, including a super delicious meat loaf and chicken and rice.  I'm loving experimenting with recipies.  Anyways, Thanksgiving morning we also went to a Turkey bowl, a football tournament with the districts.  Mi and compna. the only Hermanas that played, but it was so fun.  On one of the first plays I caught an interception and scored a touchdown. :)

My companion is a super incredible piano player.  The music director in the English branch gave us some Christmas music to practice for the branch choir program on the 15th and 22nd.  She gave me a piece, but I don't think I can learn it in time.  That is one of my life goals: learn how to sight read anything.  I'm serious about this.  I'm going to develop piano skills throughout my life so I can better serve people and my future family.  Teaching piano is going well still. 

So one miracle that happened this week:  My companion and I were at the church with about 2 more hours to work left in the day.  We prayed to know what Heavenly Father wanted us to do next.  The Elders offered a ride back to our area, so they dropped us off at the very northern part, which was a big blessing because we definitely wouldn't have had time to ride our bikes all the way back to our area and up to this part of our area.  We contacted some people, then my companion really had to go to the bathroom, but none of our members on the street were home. Finally in desperation, I asked a random younger woman walking her dog across the street if she lived nearby.  She did, so we used her bathroom and started talking.  We got to know her a little and shared stories of how the gospel has influenced our life.  We also shared with her a little about the gospel of Christ, (fe, repentance, baptism).  She had some questions about baptism, so we explained a little more.  We have a return appointment tomorrow.  It is always a miracle when you get to share your testimony with someone like that.  I'm so grateful for my baptismal experience, where I felt the spirit so strongly.  I remember right after coming out of the water looking back behind me to see if my sins were left in the water--that's how good it felt. I actually remember feeling a lifting of weight, even as an 8 year old.  Now I know that it was a powerful witness of the Holy Ghost.  I'm grateful for the opportunity to repent and become more like our Savior.  I feel myself changing as I put him first in everything I do. 

Love,

Hermana Campbell