Sister Inman Letter - March 13, 2017

17 Months Out, 21 Years Old!

Hellooooo family!!! Long email, watch out!

Wow, this week has been awesome! We've been working hard nonstop, and a lot of great things have been happening. I have a new sense of determination, it feels like!

Before I forget, I finally saw the Tillet's at church yesterday!!! Daniel and his wife :) they look like they're doing so well, they now have two kids, and they're big! He asked how each of you were, and I asked about his family. :)

First off, my new companion's name is Sister Lund! Turns out she is not really from Utah, but is actually from Virginia! This is her second area, and she's been on her mission for about 6 months. Every transfer is a new change and it takes some adjusting to a new area and companion, but this is going to be the best transfer ever.

Second off, I'm sending out a mass call for help: My companion is gluten free AND Vegan. So, no breads, butter, milk or dairy of any kind, no eggs, no cheese,....  and no meat. That's the hardest one, I think.. I gotta have me some MEAT D: My call for help is, WHAT CAN WE EAT?! Would you all mind looking for some ideas that members could use to make us meals? My companion is fine with beans and rice or a potato every night, but... she's used to that... and I seem to feel bloated or fat or sick when I eat a lot of those. But any suggestions from anyone would be very very much appreciated by yours truly. Because I really don't want to have beans and rice or a baked potato or taco salad EVERY night...  any ideas, especially variety, would be FANTASTIC. THANKS ONE BILLION! :) And it would really help out the members.

Well aside from all of that, this week was super PACKED! It was awesome! God has helped me a lot this week, and has enabled me to take over the area with more confidence. So this week we managed to at least meet most of our investigators/ people we've been wanting to work with.

Tuesday morning, we picked up Sister Lund from the Benson Transfer site, but the transfer van wasn't going to be coming back to pick up Sister Freeman until like 1:30 that afternoon... So, we were awkwardly a trio for the first half of the day! Haha. But I did get to see a couple of the missionaries I have served around probably for the last time at the transfer site, as well. That was a real tender mercy. But the morning was pretty productive, we had a lesson together, and we met a lot of people in the area!

Wednesday, we drove down to Sierra Vista for a zone meeting, which was really good! Elders Dustin and Starnes are our Zone Leaders, and our Sister Training Leaders are Sisters McMaster and Bergeson. We were trained on effective companionship study, and how crucial it is that they are focused and spirit led, and especially relevant in preparing us for the people and experiences we will be having that day. The Spirit was strong. Something that was said was, "How much you have changed by the end of your mission is a good indicator of how much you stepped outside yourself." Or in other words, how much you put into helping others progress, rather than just seeking to improve yourself. IT can happen either way, but the greater change happens when we give selfless service. 

Thursday was another awesome, productive, and successful day! We volunteered at commodities, and that was fun! We could just serve and meet the people that came in. I was in charge of organizing and distributing the breads, and I've noticed on my mission especially that I like to organize things! I'm not necessarily organized in other ways, but I do like to organize and categorize things in order to get a flow going. I also go to practice my people skills and just greeting people. It felt good to serve.

That afternoon we had a lesson with a girl named Tiffany. She's probably in her mid to late 20's and is recently trying to return to activity in the church. Her gospel knowledge is minimal, but her testimony of God is strong. We taught the Restoration and helped her feel the Spirit, which is what she said she needed!

We had a lesson that night with our investigator Hailey, and we reset her baptismal date for April 8th! She really wants it. We asked how she felt about that date, and she said, "Either I'm not gonna be a Mormon, or I'm gonna be Mormon on the 8th!" Haha. :) She has some struggles, but the Atonement is real and she can change! She struggles with the Word of Wisdom, which a lot of people around here seem to, and Satan keeps hitting her hard with trials. He's been working especially hard on the people in this area, it feels like. probably because he KNOWS something good is about to happen.

Friday morning we had an awesome lesson with Elizabeth, our other investigator, who just got married to a member on Saturday! Our lesson was on eternal marriage and following the prophet. We talked about how the prophets tell us how to be successful in our families, and testified that when we applied the things that the prophet tells us we should do, then our families are strengthened, and we then qualify for all of God's promised blessings, in particular, eternal marriages and families. We shared with her The Family: A Proclamation to the World and she really liked that. She said she and Jared (her fiance at the time) had been talking about how they want the gospel and church to be the center and foundation of their home and their marriage. She shared with us that she has felt that the more she learns about the gospel, and the more she lets her spiritual side show, the better her relationship has been with Jared. Isn't that awesome?! Even before they were married, they already were preparing to have a strong foundation, and they have found that the Gospel has strengthened them individually, and as a couple. She said that it was a testimony builder to her! The next morning, she was married! I am so excited that she is already progressing so well, and that she wants this happiness in her life. I can already tell she is going to be a success story, and I can already picture her in the temple. Next step, Baptism!

Saturday was a little rough at some points, but overall a good day. We did a lot of weekly planning and it went really well. We should be having another super awesome week! :)

But an experience I wanted to share is kind of a disheartening one, but it does have a good learning experience within it.

We called our investigator James, you know the one we though was Golden and randomly showed up to church one Sunday? Well we called to confirm that we were still on for our lesson with him, and ended up having a longer conversation about finding the truth. He said, "I've been thinking about it,... and I think we should stop meeting. I really appreciate you taking the time to come and talk to me about God, and I know you really believe it, but the more homework and research I do, the less convinced I am. I'm really sorry girls. I am finding out more and more, and I just.. I can't. I'm sorry."

Well that's not what we wanted to hear. But I knew I wasn't supposed to give up. That I needed to keep trying, and at least testify of what I know is true. So, I prayed in my head and in my heart to know what to say to this man, and also to have the courage and strength to say it with the Spirit.

I asked him if he had even read out of the Book of Mormon. He said a little bit. 

So I asked him, Well then how are you supposed to know if it is true or not if you haven't even read it? The entire reason we are here, is because we know it is true. It has blessed our lives immensely, and ALL we are asking you to do is to learn more about it and find out for yourself that it is true. We want your life to be blessed by these same truths.

"I know that you both believe it with all your hearts, and I know that you both are wonderful human beings. I just don't know that I can believe all of this. i started reading, and I didn't like what I found."

Me:What did you find?

He said, "I'm just seeing a lot of plagiarism."

Me: Plagiarism? What do you mean?

"So I was searching and found out about this guy named Edgar Smith, who wrote many of the same exact things that Joseph Smith wrote DECADES before the plates were even discovered. And I am even learning that there are missing books out of the Bible. It's been CHANGED. There are things that have been taken out! What if everything that I have ever grown up believing isn't true? Look this guy up. You'll see what I mean."

Me: Unfortunately, we can't look that up. We don't even have access to most of the internet.

"Well that's not very fair to me. What if I showed you what it says and what I found...?"

Me: James, I have searched. I have read the Book of Mormon. I have studied it. I have taken a college course on it. I am reading and studying it again. I have prayed about it. I have learned more and more as I continue to search. But I don't need to look all over the internet to try and prove it wrong, because I know that the only way you will be able to know it is true is if you turn to the Book of Mormon. There are a lot of people and sources out there, especially on the internet that will give you lots of false information and tell you all kinds of things that are not true. The ONLY way you are going to be able to know if everything is true is if you read and study in the Book of Mormon, with a real intention to know if it is true and act upon it, and pray and ask God, who is the source of ALL truth. You can search the internet and find all sorts of untruths, but I know for a fact that if you do not look to the Book of Mormon to find it's truth, you will not ever know.

A short pause. "So you think Satan is trying to stop me from learning the truth?" What the-?

Me: Yes, I do. I know he is. The same thing happened to Joseph Smith before he came to know the truth. And I know that everything we have told you is true. If I did not know 100% that this was true, then I would not be out here right now. I know the Book of Mormon is true. I know that Joseph Smith was a prophet, and I know that you can know this too. 

Anyway, he still cancelled on us, because he just needed some time to think. There were a few more things said, but I don't have much more time. 

But yeah, those were some of the experiences I had this week, and I am grateful for them. I am grateful that I was able to feel the powerful witness that the Spirit gave to me as I testified of what I knew to be true and what I believed was true to someone who was about to give up the search. 

I hope you have a wonderful week, I love you all! Thanks for the birthday wishes and prayers!

Love,

Sister Inman

P.S. Tell Dom I said hi, and also tell him to email me. Thanks :)

Sister Inman Letter - March 6, 2017

Last Transfer.... and I can see the Light at the end of the Tunnel!

Good afternoon friends and family, it's Sister Inman here.

Well, I've officially reached that point in my young missionary life
where I only have one transfer, or 6 weeks left. It has been an
incredible experience, and I think I have grown the most during the
second half of my mission.

It's been a fantastic week, and we have had some wonderful things happen!

I am limited on time, as we have a ton to do today (the day before
transfers) but I'll try to share some success stories with you!

We met our investigator James (formerly referred to as Jim), at the
food bank that we volunteer at, and he told us he just didn't believe
the Joseph Smith thing, nor that he was a prophet. And he's like "I
was raised Southern Baptist! Have you ever tried to convert one of
those? You're not going to convert me. I'm not gonna be a Mormon." We
said, "Well, James, we're not the ones that are going to convert you.
If it was up to us to try to convince people to join our church, we
would have absolutely nobody join. I'm not that talented. But we want
to meet with you because we know it has blessed our lives, and because
we know it is true, and we want you to be blessed by it too." After
prompting him a couple of times, he agreed to meet with us one more
time. That lesson went a little interesting, and there is definitely a
long way to go, but he is now interested in meeting with us regularly!

Also, we started the lesson asking him why he thought we wanted to
meet with him again. He started off by saying, "I think you're going
to try this whole time to talk about and try to convince me about
Joseph Smith and that I should believe in that whole thing." Well,
nope, that's not why. We began to talk about our purpose here on this
earth, and agency, etc. and also read from Alma 32 comparing faith to
a seed, and how when we learn something, we should plant and nourish
it and allow it to grow, to see if it is a good fruit. He said "I
really like that, I agree with what Joseph Smith wrote there." Wait...
what? Joseph Smith didn't write that... "He didn't? (utter shock to
him) who did?" Alma! He is a prophet that was on the earth many years
before Christ came. He was completely dumbfounded. That led to a
discussion on the Book of Mormon and where it came from. At the end of
the lesson, he agreed to begin reading from the Book of Mormon.

Never give up on someone after the first try! I'm so glad we didn't,
though we almost did! Satan tries hard, that one. NOT TODAY, SATAN.

This week I finally was able to go out and be a fully functioning
missionary!!! Thank you all so much for your prayers and thoughts and
well wishes! I am back out and we're having some good experiences and
success. I still have some mucus and gross stuff in my sinuses and
throat, but I am so so so much better! Yay!!!!

And transfer cheese, I am staying in Saint David, and am getting
Sister Lund, from Utah. She's been out I think about 6 months...?

I also finally got the official "My Plan", or in other words, the
official church's program for missionaries during their last 6 weeks
to help prepare them for returning home, going back to school, getting
back into the workplace, etc.

Anyway, that's all the time I have for today.

Have a great week!

Love,
Sister Inman

Okay so the story with the policeman so you don't freak out, is that we were taking pictures on the side of the road and had several cars honk or stop to see if we needed help. One happened to be a policeman... and he asked if we were okay. We said yes, and then I said actually... can we take a picture with you? And he hesitated..... but then was like, "Okay, get in the back." So we did and got this awesome picture from the dash cam perspective. haha xD

He was a member. 

Converting the local Policeman

Well, I never thought I'd actually get caught

Only YOU can prevent Wildfires.

The Benson/Pomerene/Saint David District!

Photo shoot in front of the Saint David Sign! We had fun.

Sister Inman Letter - February 27, 2017

Sure, NOW I figure it out! Less gooooo!!!

Hey y'all!

So I had ZERO time because we've been deep cleaning all day. And I am stressed almost to breaking point! Anxiety levels almost maxed out! I'm SO sorry! But good news is I made some progress for dejunking and am putting together boxes to send home. But I wanted to send you a quick email to tell you I am doing better, I am alive, and I am grateful to be a missionary. I love being a missionary in this mission, and at this time, and in this place. I am the happiest I've been so far, I think, as a missionary, because I am finally beginning to understand what it is really about.

I had a neat experience in the Book of Mormon this week, (I just finished 2 Nephi!) that really struck home with me and I gained a lot of insight as to my service as a missionary. 

2 Nephi 31. A favorite by many,  it it hit me a little differently this time. I prayed beforehand to receive revelation as to what I need to do to change and develop into a consecrated missionary, and most importantly, how I can do what God sent me to this area to do, and how I can know that I am successful and acting in such a way that the Lord would want me to as His called representative.

To read you what my notes were from this chapter, I said: "As a missionary, I am striving to represent Jesus Christ. Christ Himself witnessed to the Father through His actions and keeping the commandments that He was not only willing, but determined me sincere, not holding anything back, (including ANY desire, weakness, sin, etc.) in order to keep ALL of the commandments of the Father. This, Christ, who did keep ALL of the commandments with full purpose of heart, might, mind, and strength, could not be prevented from receiving the power of God. Due to His unfailing nature and perfect, SINCERE obedience, God could not withhold any blessing from Him. Likewise, in
order for me to fully qualify myself for, obtain, and use God's enabling power, I must:

(See 2 Nephi 31:10,13) Come before God, in humility, with no deception, but with full purpose of heart, repent of all of my sins, and show through my obedience that I am willing to keep ALL of God's commandments and requirements, as the Savior did, as I am called to represent Him as a missionary."

And then forward to verses 18-20, once I have done this and have improved to the point of repenting, praying, and receiving strength... don't just stop there! Try, do your best, seek to find those who are prepared. Continue to strive to be better. Use that power in which God has given you!

"For ye have not come thus far save it were by the word of Christ, with unshaken faith in Him, relying wholly upon the merits of him who is mighty to save. Wherefore, he MUST press forward with a STEADFASTNESS in Christ....." 

Then verse 21: "And now, behold, my beloved brethren, this is the way; and there is none other way nor name given under heaven whereby man can be saved in the kingdom of God..."

He is the way. There is no other way. We must do as he did and witness through our faith and our works, holding NOTHING back, that we are willing to keep ALL of the commandments of the Father.

This was truly meaningful to me. It reminded me that if I wanted God to help me without restraint, then I cannot hold back any part of my heart from him. No desire to not be 100% obedient to every rule, no little weakness, no little grudge or ill feeling, nothing. I have to give it all to him, because Christ himself had to do that to receive
the power to do what He did. So I must do the same. So that is my quest!

Well, that's all I have time for, I am still getting over my sickness, the doctor said it might be another two weeks or so before I'm rid of all of the junk in my system, but hey, I am up and going and nothing is going to slow this girl down. I only have a little more than a transfer left as a missionary, and I ain't got no time to lose being sick. So I am kickin this thing, and off we go to work some miracles. We finally got to go out and do some things the second half of the week, and so we are getting better. I got to go to church on Sunday and it was the best. So many people came up to me and asked if I was doing better, commented on how I looked so much better and happier and ALIVE, and it just showed me how much God loved me, and that even the people who barely met me a month ago love and care about me. The Ward Council welcomed me back with warm smiles and welcoming words. :)

Well, I hope you all have a wonderful week, enjoy Taylor's wedding! I got the invite and am so happy for him!!! What a stunning invitation. Holy cow. And her little girl is so sweet, it's so awesome to see their little family coming together :)

Love you all! Tell the relatives I say hello and love and miss them!

Good luck Megan!!! You'll do great! Welcome home, Ely!!!

Love,
Sister Inman

Sister Inman Letter - February 20, 2017

Death Bed Repentance

Ladies and Gentlemen, it's another week! And President calculated and didn't hesitate to tell me that I only have X amount of weeks left! (Thanks, President). Haha, just kidding. I had interviews last week, (now we do them every transfer) and we discussed how I want to spend these next... x amount... of weeks! I felt pumped and confident that the Lord and I would work wonders together. I have felt of God's love and strength as I have been striving to improve as a missionary, a disciple of Christ, and as an official representative of the Church. I feel like I have never been truly happier than I am now to be a missionary! I finally feel like I'm beginning to understand what I can do with the Lord's help, and despite circumstances of the day, I can end the day still being happy. I finally feel more confident that the Lord can and will work through me in the work of salvation. I feel stronger, like I can take charge of my life and change for the better! I feel like I finally understand the scripture about us being agents unto ourselves, choosing to act rather than objects to be acted upon.

And then as soon as I was geared up and pumped and doing great,.... Satan, that Scumbag, brought out his big guns.

So for the past several weeks, I haven't been feeling too great, and have had lots of congestion and stuff. Well, I never really got over that. I figured that after I had gotten the common (and miserable) cold in my last area that it was just allergies from then on. Well, as of a couple of weeks ago, it got a little worse. More coughing, more congestion. Then nearing the end of last week, Wednesday-Friday, it got BAD. I mean BAD. Thursday we were on exchanges and I tried my very best to be diligent and go out and work, and I pushed through, though I was miserable. I felt awful. But then we got to a blank spot during the day (we had already tried a few different people) and we needed to know where to go. I had no ideas. So I prayed and prayed to know where to go, and as I still don't know the area very well, figuring out who to see was somewhat difficult. But I prayed and said that we would go wherever He led us, but to please help me know where to go. Usually when I pray, my mind has a hard time slowing down and always has hundreds of different thoughts going on. But unlike the usual, my mind was completely empty. Not a single thought. And a clear impression came to my mind that said "Sister Inman, you have done all that you can do right now. You need to turn around, and go back home to rest." What? Since when does that ever happen? Well.... seeing as my mind was completely blank other than that one thought, and then soon after came the second thought, which was, "you will not be doing anyone a favor by getting them sick. Go home, and rest.", I went home.

I waited to see if anything else came, but the same impression came, reassuring me that it's what I needed to do. That started the long weekend of bitter sickness. 

Every day I got worse, and I got a new symptom daily.

So Friday morning, Bro. Bailey and Bro. Merrill gave me a healing blessing-- It was a beautiful and unique blessing. Something it said was: "it is hard to be sick and unable to work as a missionary, and have to rest and take care of yourself. But the Lord wants you to know that it is okay.  During this healing process, though you will not be able to work, and are cooped up at home most of the time, you will be able to experience spiritual growth."

Well, if any of you have ever been sick before, (haha), then you'll know that it's often difficult to feel the Spirit, or feel joy, or peace, especially when it is so miserable to be sick! Well, I can testify that during this time where I have been more sick than I have my entire mission (and probably one of the worst of the times I've been sick that I can remember), that I have had the most incredible spiritual experiences and feelings of joy, humility, GRATITUDE, patience, perseverance, and feeling the love of my God than any other time in my life. For these past 4 days or so when I have been quarantined and unable to work (or really do anything for that matter), I have experienced an incredible strengthening of my spirit testimony, and conversion. 

I have been shown SO much love and selfless service by so many people this week, and I think God allowed me to be to be in a condition where I could not do much for myself, but had to rely on others, in order to open my eyes to how many people love and care about me, that I don't even realize, and to allow me to be aware of the countless blessings He has been pouring out upon me these past few days, that I might have taken for granted otherwise. And I am so grateful that God loved me enough to put me through this awful sickness (which was still extremely miserable, don't get me wrong), in order to allow me to experience and develop these necessary attributes. My companion has done nothing but serve me and do all she can to help me feel better, happier, or more comfortable, and many others have sacrificed so much for me.

Saturday evening, we did splits and I stayed at an elderly lady's home, while Sister Freeman went to a lesson. The lady's name was Sister Tilton, and she is the spunkiest old lady I've ever met. Everything was at it's worst that night. Shaky, weak, blazing fever, (like my whole body felt steaming hot), terrible cough, no energy at all. 

But during my short stay at Sister Tilton's home, after she had brought me some soup and anything else that I might need, she allowed me to pray on my own. I was totally overwhelmed by how much she had sacrificed for me, even something as simple as some soup, tissues, quotes from President Hinkley, and the simple words of comfort and cheer she brought in each time she came in to check on me. As I sat there and just pondered and tried to soak everything up, I was overcome with emotion and just cried and cried. I started to pray to simply bless the food, but my mind reflected on so many other things that people had done for me even just the past few days, and was filled with gratitude like I had never felt before. After awhile, Sister Tilton came in to ask if I was okay, and what was the matter. I told her I was okay, and that so many people have done so much for me. She paused a moment, and then said, "You're worth it, sweetie." And the love I felt kept flowing throughout the day. 

One of my former companions shared with me a motto or quote that she loved, which goes like this: "Sometimes we need to hit rock bottom, so that we can know that He IS the rock at the bottom."

Sunday was a blessed day. We prayed the night before that we would be able to keep the Sabbath Day Holy and still receive the renewal and remission of sins, and joy of the Sabbath, even though we would be unable to go to church. I was unable to go to church, as a missionary! Kind of ironic, huh? Well Sister Freeman, my companion, is an angel, and worked it out so that I could have the sacrament brought to me at home. We did temporary splits with the Pomerene Sisters so my companion could at least go to the sacrament part of the meeting, but then after the end of church, an advisor and two young men came to deliver the sacrament just to me. Let me tell you, that was probably the most special, spirit-filled moment that I partook of the sacrament. I  better understood just how personal and individual the Atonement of Christ really is, as they placed one small piece of bread on the tray, blessed it, and passed it to me, and did the same with a singular cup of water- blessed it, and passed it to me. I was already crying by that point. It is a truly humbling experience that I have never had before. It reminded me just how aware my Heavenly Father is of me, and also of how much love these people in this area have for me, to make sure that I individually was able to partake of this sacred ordinance. Jesus Christ went through all of the pains and sufferings that He did, and was scourged, killed, and he rose again, so that I, Sister Torie Inman, might partake of the blessings of eternal life, forgiveness of sin, and the strength to endure any trial. What a precious, sweet feeling that was for me. Although it was just a couple of young men, I felt as though the Savior Himself was offering me those emblems of His body and blood that was shed and spilt for me. What a wonderful experience to be a part of, and also for those boys to have. :)

Sister Freeman later told me that when she had tried to finagle a way for me to have the sacrament, that several different people wanted to do it for me, and that the other Ward was sad that they didn't know I was so sick, and that they would have done the same. 

A few more acts of love and service and sacrifice given to me that I want to acknowledge: 

-Pomerene sisters sacrificing time in their area to split with us and help Sis Freeman to continue to work in our area.

-Sis Merrill doing Walmart runs to pick up necessities and my meds 

-Less active family who had us for dinner brought us dinner instead and it was AMAZING.

-Sis Freeman keeps making me these luxurious meals, breakfast in bed !

-Brother and Sister Jones, these members in our Ward, drove us all the way to Tucson and back, in order for me to go to Urgent Care, got us breakfast, waited for me at urgent care, and sacrificed so much for me.

God knows what we need. And it is often through our trials that we learn to trust in his plan the most. He always provides a way to help us grow into the people he wants us to become, if we let him.

I have finally come to understand what president Uchtdorf meant when he encouraged us to be "grateful in any circumstance". 

I know my Savior lives. I know He and our Father in Heaven have an unconditional, never ending, ever abiding love for us that we cannot comprehend. When we trust him and accept his will. He can bless us with the strength to overcome all things. And I say this in the name of Him who gave us the greatest gift that any of God's children could ever provide for us, even Jesus Christ, amen. 

I hope you have a blessed week, and remember to count your blessings, name them one by one, and show gratitude for EVERYTHING! I am grateful for all of you, my family and friends. 

Love and miss you!

Sister Inman

Tombstone part 1

 

Sister Inman Letter - February 13, 2017

SUHWEET 16!!! Enrique's Baptism, Rabbits, and Gifts from Strangers

Good morning, good morning!!! Wow, what a rewarding weekend, and what blessings God has bestowed upon us this week!!! My heart is so full and bursting with gratitude, so much that I have "not room enough to receive it"!

Enrique's baptism. Okay. That was seriously one of the happiest days of my mission. I can't fully express the pure JOY I felt when I watched Enrique enter those waters and take part in the sacred ordinance of baptism. By far the most beautiful baptismal ordinance I've ever seen and witnessed. Nobody could have denied the immense Spirit that filled that room and had me in tears as Enrique took his first step towards following his Lord and Savior. Each of these baptisms that I have the blessing to have been a part of reminds me why am am on a mission, and why I am in the ARIZONA TUCSON mission. Enrique and his family is why I am here. There is nothing better and no feeling sweeter than to see the fruits of your labor of love and faith. There is nothing that brings me greater joy as a missionary than to know that I was chosen at that time to be an instrument in God's hands at that time, and to see the power of God work through me to perform miracles.

I echo the words found in Alma 26, as Ammon is praising his God:

"And now, I ask, what great blessings has he bestowed upon us? Can ye tell?

"Behold, I answer for you; for our brethren, the Lamanites, were in darkness, yea, even in the darkest abyss, but behold, how many of them are brought to behold the marvelous light of God! And this is the blessing which hath been bestowed upon us, that we have been made instruments in the hands of God to bring about this great work.

"Behold, the field was ripe, and blessed are [we], for [we] did thrust in the sickle, and did reap with [our] might, yea, all the day long did [we] labor; and behold the number of [our] sheaves! And they shall be gathered into the garners, that they are not wasted.

"But Ammon said unto him: I do not boast in my own strength, nor in my own wisdom; but behold, my joy is full, yea, my heart is brim with joy, and I will rejoice in my God.

"Yea, I know that I am nothing; as to my strength I am weak; therefore I will not boast of myself, but I will boast of my God, for in his strength I can do all things; yea, behold, many mighty miracles we have wrought in this land, for which we will praise his name forever."

Enrique was prepared by the Lord. There are so many of those around us who are in preparation to hear the word of God, and sometimes it is their circumstances that humble them enough to receive it. I am so grateful to have been a part of his conversion, and to have been able to see him grow from the very beginning to this first step. I can't wait to see their family all joining and be sealed in the temple.

Enrique! His wife Grisel, and son, Nathaniel, along with 4 of the 5 missionaries that got to work with him! In order from right to left, too! 

Enrique and his friend Joel, who got to baptize him! Joel worked with him, and had simple conversations about the church and gospel with him. It stuck. And here we are! Simple missionary work! :)

Nathaniel! He's my buddy. I used to give him stickers at our lessons. :) (he went outside and picked some "floras!", hence the ones in his shirt pocket)

Okay. And now about the rabbits. So apparently the people down here eat rabbit! So......... I tried rabbit enchiladas a couple nights ago, and it actually tasted really good! probably because it was drowned in enchiladas and other things like cheese and green chiles, etc. But it tastes a lot like chicken. Pretty much the same. However, I have to admit that I felt pretty uneasy the whole time haha. I had to psych myself out the whole time, like "I'm eating chicken, I'm eating chicken..." or "it's okay, you'll be okay!" I probably won't ever eat rabbit again... I felt wayyyy too guilty haha. I ate Thumper :( A couple weeks ago, I ate elk meat mixed with pork, and that was pretty good too. One thing about the boonies is that you get to try new foods and lots of people hunt or kill their own food out here! The people in Saint David are generally pretty self-reliant, which is awesome!

Gifts from strangers. So on our way back from the baptism, we stopped at In-n-Out for lunch, as it's not too expensive, and Sister Graff from California was craving it her whole mission haha. Well, when we got there, we saw an older man and his dog. He pointed out my tag, and seemed like he was curious as to who we were! So we said hello, and I said "we're missionaries!". So we ended up talking to this man for quite a while, and it just came naturally! It wasn't weird, and it turns out that he has had contact with missionaries in the past! 

He had an experience with a Mormon who helped him when his car was broken down. The member asked him if he would be interested in learning more, and if he would allow the missionaries over. So Wayne, (the name of the man we talked to) said sure! You were so kind to me, and I'll show them the same kindness you showed me. So he sent the missionaries over there, and they taught him a little bit. He was very kind to them, and listened to them, but was already involved in a church. But he did tell us over and over again how much he admired us and the work we were doing, and how "if he were to shop for a religion, he'd choose the Mormon one" (he even told his minister that who wasn't too happy hahaha). But it was just a wonderful conversation that we had with him about service and how we should go about doing good and showing kindness to all of those around us, and how that's what Christ did his whole life. Anyway, so we had gone in after awhile and gotten some food, and he invited us to come back and sit with him to talk. So we did! And it was so neat. Wayne was from New York, but he sometimes moves down to Prescott. (Snowbird?) But he traveled a lot and was in Tucson for the Rock and Gem Show. Apparently it's really big here. But he makes jewelry and showed us some of the things he got there! He had some Mexican Opal, that are very beautiful and all unique! he showed us a couple of things he had made, and said that he would make us custom Mexican Opal rings for our kindness and our "bright countenance" or something similar. He appreciated how genuine we were. And so he let us hand pick out which stone we wanted, and told him our ring size. And he said "okay, when you graduate from your mission, send me a letter. And I will send you your ring as a graduation gift for a job well done." He was a sweet man, and he said "you know, I don't think our meeting was a coincidence. I think we were supposed to cross paths. Thank you for touching my life and making my day today." Great experience.

Haha :)

A couple of other things that showed us how much God loves us was how we had FIVE investigators at church on Sunday!!! :) Three of them were not even official investigators yet!! But because they are potentials, and are coming to church, their investigation begins. :) So you know how we had been praying and fasting for new investigators? Well we got a couple new referrals, and we should hopefully be meeting with them soon! :) We should officially have 2 or 3 new ones this week. God is so loving and wonderful!

An official alien from Area 51 in New Mexico!

Weekly planning in the digital age

We had a wicked sweet storm last night, we had a lightning strike right next to us! Less than a mile away... shook our car. But it's BEAUTIFUL!

Yesterday was my 16 month mark. Woo! 

Well, we're going to be headed to Tombstone for P-day today! I'm so excited to hit some museums and take lots of pictures! But that's all the time I have today. I love you and pray for you often!

Have a fantastic week! HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

Love,

Sister Inman

Looking for service! We got two takers from widows in the ward!

the things you find

Sister Merrill showed us how to make homemade noodles, and we also made bowtie pasta!!! :)