So in fact I did get your letters! Made my week! And yes mom, you are still a fortune teller and you always know exactly what I need to hear!
Today for pday we are going to go on a bike ride in a beautiful park called Villa Borghese, and we are dedicating a good chunk of time to sitting on the lawn and writing letters!
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Villa Borghese - Photo Credit HERE. |
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Piazza di Siena - Villa Borghese gardens. Photo Credit HERE. |
I didn't get to see Sorella Udall, I missed all of the greenies by just a few minutes! And I am sorry, but I don't remember where she got sent.
Trayser's announcement looks great!!! You did so good! :) Speaking of the guy, he is just so great! I remember what those days felt like. All you can really do is encourage him to have faith in the future and look forward to what is coming next. I really hope he gets into BYU. (I think he will). Oh and speaking of BYU, I had revelation yesterday! So you know how I am stressed about not getting in because of my GPA. Well seeing that I will be in Italy for 18 months I would hope that I will be able to speak Italian pretty well, and if so I can TEST OUT of all of the Italian classes, which will automatically give me A's. Speriamo bene!
So this week has been really good. We were able to have 5 new investiators this week! And we have been involving the members more, and the results have been great!
Anna is back this week. I called her and she said that she would like to read the Book of Mormon before she meets with us again. Maybe you can talk to Sister Graham and ask her to send her a letter and bear her testimony about the Book of Mormon. I think it would really help. Also if she could encourage her to meet with the missionaries more often.
Luca's baptism is still on for this Saturday!!!!! He had his interview this week and he is all ready. I am so excited for him. He has made so much progress in the last few months and I am so grateful that I was able to watch it!
We have actually noticed that the young adult group here in Rome 2 has grown almost overnight! We went from 0 young adults to 10 in about 2 months! We have started a YSA group and we are hoping that it will go well. I love love love working with the GANS (YSA Italian style) They are so open to the gospel and so many of them are just looking for answers that the gospel can answer.
Yesterday we had lunch with a member and Carol and they asked her why she joined the church. Her answer was "it just all MADE SENSE" there are so many people who have pieces to the puzzle and they have a glimpse of the beauty of the gospel, but they are just lacking the fullness. And when all the pieces come together it just makes sense. And there is a beauty that comes with it that these young adults can't resist. I feel like that might be a big reason why I am here in Rome 2. My patriarchal blessing talks about working with the youth.
We also started teaching another GANS. Her name is Simona and she is 21. We found her on the bus and just like the others, she is looking for that beauty of the gospel. She accepted a soft baptismal invite and came to church yesterday!
The lady from English Course last week came up to me and she is still confused and broke down and agreed to meet with us :)
Work here is going great!
On Saturday Rome 6 (it used to be part of Rome 2, but they divided the ward about 6 months ago. They don't have any sisters assigned there yet, so we help out a lot with Rome 6) did un spettacolo dei talenti! Talent show! Sorella O'Connor and I did the cup song off of Pitch Perfect and they loved it! Then all of us together did a fun skit to the lollipop song. Italians love cheesy things and so it was a really fun activity!
Oh!!! And because Rome has lots of American families here either working on the Temple or working at the embassy, we have special privileges! This week we somehow managed to get a hold of 2 jars of PEANUT BUTTER! and a bottle of real vanilla! Wooo!
Talent Show! :)
Decorated chins for the lollipop song skit. :)
Luca & friends - watching the talent show.
We found some fun glasses:
Oh! And I got to do Pday on Monday with Sorella Bradford. Oh how much I love that girl and miss her so much!
So it is officially the start of transfer #7. And I think I kinda hit a mid mission crisis. I have been trying my hardest to give it my all for the past 9 months and I kinda hit this wall. And I just feel tired and worn out. Willing to just get by with what I have. So I have been trying to figure out how to solve this little problem. After some thinking, I found the root to the problem.
Being in Rome 2 is amazing! And in all honesty it doesn't need me. At least not like I was needed in Rome 5 and not like I was needed in Palermo. And it has really opened up my eyes to see that this isn't my missionary work. This is the Lord's missionary work. The work will go forward with or without me! Coming to Rome 2 has made me step out of the spotlight and humble myself. All this time my motivation has been wrong. I have been doing this work more for me than I should be. But this is the Lord's work, not mine. My motivation should be my pure love for the Savior. When I take a step back and peel off my pride, I realize that maybe I don't understand the Atonement as well as I thought I did. So this week I have been trying to deepen my understanding for my Savior. So that my love for Him will take first place in my life.
I have really learned a lot about grace this week. Grace is divine means of help and strength. Help to overcome weaknesses that you on your own can't overcome. But how to we fully access the grace of Jesus Christ? Through the Atonement. And how do we utilize the Atonement? The Sacrament.
I love the quote by David O McKay:
"The purpose of the gospel is to make bad men good and good men better, and to change human nature."When we take the sacrament every week we receive the divine help and strength, through the Atonement of Jesus Christ, to overcome our weaknesses, to become better people.
"The enabling power of the Atonement strengthens us to do and be good and to serve beyond our own individual desire and natural capacity" Bednar
Well I think that is all for this week. I love you guys!Sorella Wiltbank
P.S. I also forgot in my email!! We did a fun helping hands service project on Tuesday! It was really nice to put on a pair of jeans and grab a rake and get dirty! Wooo!
Sis. Wiltbank, you are so amazing! I love you so much and love learning from you. Loved your epiphany this past week, and will implement that in my church service too! Keep smiling girlie.. you are my hero!
ReplyDeleteLisa Wilkins