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Heyo!

This week has been stressful again but it was easier than last week. Yesterday Bishop Smith asked me to give a talk right before sacrament meeting because one of the speakers didn't show up. I had mainly decided to talk about Alma 36: 3, "I beseech of thee that thou wilt hear my words and learn of me; for I do know that whosoever shall put their trust in God shall be supported in their trials, and their troubles, and their afflictions, and shall be lifted up at the last day." This past week I have noticed that Satan is working so hard against the people in the ward and I wanted to remind them to keep fighting and keep serving and keeping loving. I know I haven't really exactly talked about the people in Terryville. I will talk about the people we mainly visit with and teach. You will see some examples of success in overcoming their personal struggles and some examples of giving up but we will not give up on them. 

We went apple picking this morning with the Bradhsaws.  This is how our companionship works and the little girl is feeding me some apple :)

On Monday, we taught the Bradshaw family again. Remember how I told you about Shyla? Well, that night was awesome. Shyla's husband had helped out with the kids and sat with the family for the first time in a long time for dinner. Shyla's father also joined in the kitchen and ate with us. Sister Larsen had told me that it was the first time in 6 months that she served here that had ever happened. Shyla looked at me and said that this had never happened before. We then decided to watch the Book of Mormon animated movie about Lehi's vision of the tree of life. The family watched together and had their eyes glued to the tv. Their oldest son, EJ, was explaining the movie to us afterward. He is a smart dude. They were so happy together and it was cool to see how the gospel can bless their lives and strengthen their family relationship. I love seeing these miracles happen.

Brother Carlson, Sister Carlson, Sister Cutting, Me, Sister Lobo (who use to serve in Terryville), Brother Dyber, Sister Dyber, Elizabeth, Sister Larsen, Sister Lesuma (Sister Lovo's companion), Sister Cheri Peacock (she is home now, she found Elizabeth last year), and her boyfriend, Lance.

We went to the temple with Elizabeth Nelson on Tuesday to receive her endowment. It was powerful and it was cool to watch Elizabeth through the whole process. She held tight on my hands and she was crying. I could tell it was some thing new for her but at the same time she was feeling the spirit so strong. It was amazing! Temples are so powerful. When making covenants with God, how can we doubt that His Gospel is true? Afterward we went out to eat. I started getting a really bad headache and stomachache and pretty much slept in the car the whole ride home. Then my companion got so sick and we both wanted to throw up. At one point my companion thought I was dead... I think. We are both better now :)

We are so excited to do the dishes!

We went over to Lynne's home to help pack up her house. Before we started, Sister Larsen and I wanted to help her with the one thing Lynne felt like she was struggling with, feeling the Holy Ghost. We taught her the lesson of the Holy Ghost. We read from Preach My Gospel together, watched a video, shared our experiences. One thing I noticed is that Preach My Gospel said, "Do not be afraid of silence" because it gives them a chance to process their thoughts.  In her mind Lynne was listening, she was pondering, you could tell she had a desire to feel the love Heavenly Father has for her. Lynne was so happy as we continued to pack up her home. She finally finished one room and she was filled with joy that she accomplished something great. Before we left, Lynne gave us a hug. She simply said, "I wanted to tell you something. For the first time in a long time I finally felt the Holy Ghost today. I felt so much peace and happiness. Thank you so much." We smiled knowing that we allowed the spirit to teach her. The next few times we helped her, she was so happy and we are grateful for the Lord letting us know what her needs were and how we could help her.

On Wednesday, we had a lesson with a member Susan and our investigators, Staryl and Marylou. Honestly we should separate those two sometimes haha. They are so awkward and funny together. Staryl was telling us that she had a mini operation on her breast and requested a flower tattoo on her nipple and she has it. Now she has to take antibiotics and is talking about how her breast itches and is uncomfortable. So somehow Marylou kind of went on the same topic in a different way. Marylou is a high school teacher and talks a lot about how teenagers dress and how they get raped and then all the sudden she started showing us her most of her breast. Great..... Staryl then said, "Can we change the topic? I'm getting uncomfortable." It was the weirdest lesson we had with them. 

We played a game

Peng Jing, Jeffrey, Suke, Joan, William, Me and Sister Larsen

              We felt prompted to go see the Chinese people that were in our area book.  My first Chinese investigator on Long Island lives there but the elders decided to take him and teach him and they are doing great. I am happy for them. But there were 8 other Chinese people that live with him. We showed up and their English is okay. I decided to speak English with them at first and then all the sudden I spoke Chinese with them and it was awesome! Thanks to my trainer Sister Johnson for always telling me to keep studying Chinese whether I was in the Chinese program or not. I am really grateful that I have been studying Chinese daily or I would have not been prepared to speak with them. They are all so pure in heart and ready! I also prayed to allow the Lord to use me as a tool to speak Chinese and He has answered my prayers. We will be visiting them often.

庄翔宇 Zhuang Xiang Yu is amazing. The elders were also teaching her and finally we got to teach her, thanks to the Law of Chastity lesson :) Xiang Yu has been coming to church every week and has such  powerful questions and lots of wisdom. She helped so many relief society members yesterday. She feels happy in the church and we talk often. She told us that she wanted her husband to come to church. Her husband came yesterday to church for the first time. It was awesome. Xiang Yu is so happy he came. I am so excited to keep working with her.

We played Apple to Apple with Melissa, Jessica and Adrianna.  Look at my wonderful attributes :(  Totally describes me...haha

Melissa and Jessica received the Holy Ghost yesterday.  I love Mother and Daughter baptisms and confirmations. They can be so emotional sometimes. When Melissa went up to receive the Holy Ghost, Jessica wanted me to hug her as she folded her arms. She was so happy and excited to receive her's. I loved Melissa's blessing because the priesthood leader said, "She will have the strength of recognizing the spirit and acting upon those feelings she receives."Melissa came down to the bench and it was Jessica's turn. While Jessica receive her's, Melissa started crying. One thing I love about the blessing Jessica received was that Heavenly Father is so proud of her and that she will be bringing a lot of success to Heavenly Father's work. When they reunited back to the church bench, they both hugged and they cried. I'm so proud of them. They came a long way. They will bring so much joy as they continue to build the Lord's kingdom. For the first time, Melissa and Jessica had decided to separate and go to the classes they were assigned to go to. It was cool to see that. After church they had surprised us with a temple recommend in their hands. We are going to the temple with them next week! Ahhhh! It was such a happy moment for all of us. 

In this picture, Adrianna did my hair!

                                                                     

We brought dinner to Melissa and Jessica yesterday and Adrianna was there. Jessica came out and hugged me and started crying. She cried because of the situation with Adrianna. Adrianna is such an amazing girl. But unfortunately...she had changed in a sad way. Since Adrianna had to go back home to family for school, things have been tough for her. This week we have found out that there are bad situations going on at home. Adrianna might be forced out of her home and go into a foster care. Also Adrianna's grandma found out that Adrianna was coming to church. The grandma told Adrianna's mom about the church and threatened her and told her she couldn't come to church again. Adrianna is 11 years old and it's painful for me to see her go through that. When I saw her yesterday, she was different, she was zoned out, she wouldn't talk to me and I had to get her back to the Adrianna I knew. I asked, "How are you?" She wouldn't look at me and said, "Fine" I said, "How are you really?" She wanted to cry but because she has been through a lot in her own home she learned how to build that wall up. She threw a tantrum and people tried to talk to her but Adrianna only wanted to listen to me. My heart breaks for her. She lives in a home with no love and other things that I cannot talk about. When I first met Adrianna, I got an impression in my mind and in my heart, "Sister Moore, you're going to take Adrianna under your arms." Then later at a different time, Adrianna asked if she could live with me in Utah and something felt right in my heart. I didn't know why. Now I found out why. I want to take her under my arms and take care of her. But the question I had was how. The Lord said, trust me. I never got a feeling this clear to me that I need to take care of her. I got Adrianna to join the lesson with us and at the end, she asked one of the nonmembers to join us for the closing prayer. She explained to him what a prayer was, and said the most beautiful prayer ever. We will continue to work with her and see what happens. She helped Melissa and Jessica. She can change many lives in the church. I believe in her. She has potential! 

We had another lesson with Staryl. Her car broke down yesterday so she couldn't come to the Terryville church yesterday but a friend from a different branch offered her a ride and took her to Riverhead. So we decided to go over and teach her. We taught her and the spirit was so strong. She then started to say that she had a feeling to move to New York from New Jersey, then she became really good friends with a member from Riverhead, and through her, she met us. She said God had a reason. All the reasons led her to the Mormon Church. She said her heart felt whole and she feels right about being on this path. Staryl have received that witness for herself. We are so excited to keep helping her progress. I love her so much.

Amy is a less active that we been trying to work with and teach. She is doing awesome now. She stopped coming to church because her little boy Jacob can be crazy and a little bit wild. She doesn't have a husband so she is on her own. Well, she has been coming back 4 weeks in a row now. She has been attending activities and all. She is so happy that she can fulfill her calling in the YW. She is planning to receive her endowment in March.  I love seeing the changes she has made and seeing her from sadness to full of joy and smile on her face. 

Annmarie, my heart breaks for her. She kept on canceling lessons with us. She is so strong in her faith and keeping all the commitments but the real struggle is coming to church. She is trying so hard to come to church but her husband is not being supportive and she is starting to give up hope. She is so sad because she can't come to a place where she knows it's true and it brings true happiness in her life. We told her to keep going. We are not giving up on her. We invited her to pray and read scriptures and listen to the spirit to help figure out a way. We told her Nephi's story, " I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them." We promised Annmarie that as she continue to rely The Lord, the Lord will help her overcome this stumbling block. We fasted for her yesterday and I have faith in her. It's all going to be okay.

I want to share my testimony. I know this gospel is the only way we can return to our Father in Heaven. The gospel brings a lot of peace and joy in our lives. The gospel heals and strengthen people especially in family. The gospel changes lives only if we allow the gospel to be planted into our heart. I know Jesus Christ loves us and wants us to take His hands and let Him guide us. Jesus Christ is my Savior, He is my Redeemer, He is my Best Friend. He loves us and care for us and I love Him. Only through him, can we return back to our heavenly home. I love you mom! 

Love

Your Daughter,

Sister Moore