Many Blessings!!

Hello!!

This week has been very cold! And it snowed last night, so this morning we got to bike in the snow for the first time, which was an adventure for sure.  Even though it's been very cold, it's beautiful to see the snow, especially at night. Also, we have seen so many blessings this transfer!!

JH is doing well. This week he struggled with the Word of Wisdom, so won't make his baptismal date for the end of November, but he is praying not only for help to live the Word of Wisdom, but for guidance to know when he will be ready for baptism. AND, he's doing AWESOME because he hasn't smoked in two days!! It's amazing to me how powerful the Atonement is, how thoroughly it can change not just our behavior, but our very natures. The power of the Atonement can be accessed in our personal lives as we exercise obedience to Heavenly Father -or in other words, keep our covenants. Another really neat, faith-promoting incident was that earlier, when we taught him the Word of Wisdom and he heard about coffee, he was disappointed. However, he so easily and  readily submitted himself to God's will. I know that that was a sacrifice for him, but it's amazing to see how much trust he has in God!!

Another tender mercy from Heavenly Father this week, is K. For a Relief Society activity, we went to visit a women's shelter. We got to cook for them and eat with them. One of the RS sisters befriended K and ended up bringing her to church on Sunday! It reminded me think about the "go about doing good" section in Preach My Gospel (Chapter 9). Truly, when we have a sincere desire to love and serve our fellowmen, sharing the gospel is simply a natural response. After church, she had many questions about the Plan of Salvation and we are going to teach her with Sister E this week!

And yes! I got my brakes fixed. Phew, that was stressful and definitely worth the $20.

My greenie, Sister J, is doing great and is so adorable. 

I just have mixed feelings right now about being on a bike in the bitter cold. There is no way I could have done this last winter. I have to remind myself that Christ understands and He isn't asking me to do anything that He hasn't done. I know I have to give it a good, legitimate try. So this week will be interesting. But, Heavenly Father is blessing us and I see His hand in this part of my life.  And there is a specific kind of satisfaction that comes from doing really hard things. So I'm confident we will see many blessings, tender mercies and miracles this winter. I just will have to pray a lot and be extra positive. "He lives to hear my soul's complaint" right? It will be good. And, Heavenly Father tends to bless me with a lot of good food when I am having a rough time. :) ♥

I know that when we simply love, serve and do our best, whether we are a full-time missionary or a member, that Heavenly Father will consecrate our efforts and bless us a hundredfold. We didn't have much success this week with finding on our own, but as we continued in faith, Heavenly Father opened up a way for us. He also blessed our Branch member with the opportunity to share the Gospel as she made the effort to be "anxiously engaged". :)

Have you seen the muffin man?

Love,

Sister Ashlyn Galloway