Sister Houston's email:
September 19, 2011
HELLO FAMILY!
Well, mom i hope you made it home safe! Sounds like you had a good time. And justin is a stinker....of course im not mad at him. What a goof. Im really not suppose to email anyone but my parents and siblings. I will write him back no worries. Theres just not always a ton of time to write letters on p-day!! How was every ones week?? Mine was good. I just finished reading Coltens email. Man so many missionaries get sick! Its crazy. and no mom im not really feeling any better. I actually feel worse.....sorry. I'll tell you more in my letter home. Anyways, what a week. Its so cold already!!!! Its been in the 50s and 60s this week.....brrrrrrrrrrrr. I so not ready for it! Wow the trees are changing already too! That im excited for. Arizona is going to be.....so.....plain compared to all of this. But that's ok. At least it wont be as cold as OHIO!
Sister Gamble and I met with Barbara twice this week! She is doing good. Oh my does she talk ALOT! We've been having trouble getting out of the lessons on time. A normal lesson is suppose to be no longer then 45 minutes. A Barbara lesson is about an hour and a half to 2 hours! We've been wanting so badly to teach her the plan of salvation the last few times we've seen her. She has so many questions about life and this plan will answer all of them! The problem is that when we start teaching she'll stop us and say "Now wait just one minute.....you said what?" Usually that leads to a completely new topic. It can be stressful but through it all my testimony of the power of the spirit has been strengthened. Often promptings come as quiet subtle thoughts. If im not careful i might not catch them. Sister Gamble and I have to rely on the spirit or our lessons go know where! We have witnessed the Holy Ghost work through us and also the members we bring every lesson. Even though it doesn't always go the way we hope, it always turns out ok. God's the one who knows her and what she needs. Barbara is so passionate about finding out what her purpose is in this life. Its inspiring! She's been through so much and wants to know what God wants of her. She's pretty amazing.
Well, unfortunately i better get going. We have much to do today :)
Family, I love you all! Thank you for everything. Thank you for your letters and emails. Thank the other Houston family for me too :) They mean so much to me. God has a plan for each one of us. One of our purposes in this life is to find joy! You make me happy family. Strive to strengthen your relationship with God and Christ. I know that as you do that you will find who you really are, you'll find the greatest joy. i hope you all have a great week! Be safe.
Love,
SISTER HOUSTON
ps happy birthday hunter!!!!!
Sunday, October 2, 2011
LAST TRANSFER, OH MY!!!
I can't believe that Tori will be home in 6 weeks.....but i am not counting....haha right!! It will fly by for all of us and especially her. She says she can't wait to see all of our beautiful faces but....just not yet!! She will work hard and make these last few weeks the best ever!!
Sister Houston's email:
September 13, 2011
Hello!!!
Well, my last transfer is here and guess where im going to serve.........
HIRAM!!! Wooohoooo
Im sure excited. I can't believe I will see you all in six weeks.....SIX WEEKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Anyways, well how are you all??? Im doing great. We had a pretty good week. Sister Gamble the poor thing has had sinus problems since shes arrived and hasnt been feeling well. We stayed in for two days to rest. Heavenly Father blessed us. We had more lessons this week then we've had since we've been together!
Wednesday we had another lesson with Leroy. Man, what do i even say about Leroy. Its like a completely different person. The adversary is sure working on him!! We had our lesson at the church building so that his daughter Gabby could be apart of the Young Women/Young Men activity. While she was doing that Leroy, his three other kids (yes he also has a 5 year old son...Gabe), Sister Lewis (the member) and us of course went into the primary room to have the lesson. Oh my was it a rough lesson. Leroy was not very into it. It was like talking to a brick wall. I think it was a combination of things. He was tired from work and the kids were crazy. He was hesitant to come to church again too. Said he might. Well unfortunately he didnt show. We decided to head over after church to see if he was around. He pulled up right behind us when we were getting out of our car :) The stinky thing is that he went to another church with his kids. No good right. The great thing is that we are going to meet with him again this coming week. He's sincerely searching just don't recognize the answers.
Now....
Remember Barbara? We had lost contact with her for about a month after an amazing spiritual experience (made us sad), she got hit by a car just a few weeks ago, then called us again, had a priesthood blessing two sundays ago, met with us again this week and.....guess what.....she came to church Sunday!!!!!!! We had a great lesson with her on Thursday. She read the testimonies in the Book of Mormon and has soooo many questions about Joseph Smith. Barbara is a thinker thats for sure! But my does she feel the spirit! I don't think she recognizes it as her answer but she knows there is something good here. At church she was telling the Gospel Principle teacher that she's been to many churches and never seems to feel right in any.
There are people out there searching for truth! They just have no idea where to find it and how to find it. And when it comes they dont recognize it. The adversary is real!! But so is Heavenly Father and his son Jesus Christ. Makes me all the more grateful to be a part of this work. I know Heavenly Father is aware of Leroy and Barbara. The challenges they are facing are preparing there hearts to receive this message all in the Lords time. I've come to love these people!! Im grateful to help them know heavenly father and jesus christ love them! What a great work!!!
Well I better get going.
I love you family!!!!
LOVE,
Sister Houston
Sister Houston's email:
September 13, 2011
Hello!!!
Well, my last transfer is here and guess where im going to serve.........
HIRAM!!! Wooohoooo
Im sure excited. I can't believe I will see you all in six weeks.....SIX WEEKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Anyways, well how are you all??? Im doing great. We had a pretty good week. Sister Gamble the poor thing has had sinus problems since shes arrived and hasnt been feeling well. We stayed in for two days to rest. Heavenly Father blessed us. We had more lessons this week then we've had since we've been together!
Wednesday we had another lesson with Leroy. Man, what do i even say about Leroy. Its like a completely different person. The adversary is sure working on him!! We had our lesson at the church building so that his daughter Gabby could be apart of the Young Women/Young Men activity. While she was doing that Leroy, his three other kids (yes he also has a 5 year old son...Gabe), Sister Lewis (the member) and us of course went into the primary room to have the lesson. Oh my was it a rough lesson. Leroy was not very into it. It was like talking to a brick wall. I think it was a combination of things. He was tired from work and the kids were crazy. He was hesitant to come to church again too. Said he might. Well unfortunately he didnt show. We decided to head over after church to see if he was around. He pulled up right behind us when we were getting out of our car :) The stinky thing is that he went to another church with his kids. No good right. The great thing is that we are going to meet with him again this coming week. He's sincerely searching just don't recognize the answers.
Now....
Remember Barbara? We had lost contact with her for about a month after an amazing spiritual experience (made us sad), she got hit by a car just a few weeks ago, then called us again, had a priesthood blessing two sundays ago, met with us again this week and.....guess what.....she came to church Sunday!!!!!!! We had a great lesson with her on Thursday. She read the testimonies in the Book of Mormon and has soooo many questions about Joseph Smith. Barbara is a thinker thats for sure! But my does she feel the spirit! I don't think she recognizes it as her answer but she knows there is something good here. At church she was telling the Gospel Principle teacher that she's been to many churches and never seems to feel right in any.
There are people out there searching for truth! They just have no idea where to find it and how to find it. And when it comes they dont recognize it. The adversary is real!! But so is Heavenly Father and his son Jesus Christ. Makes me all the more grateful to be a part of this work. I know Heavenly Father is aware of Leroy and Barbara. The challenges they are facing are preparing there hearts to receive this message all in the Lords time. I've come to love these people!! Im grateful to help them know heavenly father and jesus christ love them! What a great work!!!
Well I better get going.
I love you family!!!!
LOVE,
Sister Houston
MISSIONARY WORK IS THE LORDS WORK
Oh my, Tori is an amazing missionary....I know that Heavenly Father is mindful of all these Sisters who serve so diligently. She is truly going to miss this when she returns home to all of us.
Sister Houston's email:
September 6, 2011
Hey wonderful family,
Ah! What an amazing week!!!! Im excited to tell you about it! But first...how was your week? Did you all have a good Labor day? We had a very large feast here in Kirtland...like usual right :) I went home very full. It was a fun night. I love being around these Sisters and Senior Couples. They truly shine with the light of Christ. I hope you all had a fabulous Labor Day too!
Now......
Thursday we got some information about a man named Leroy who was a former investigator in one of the sisters areas, the Chardon area. Im not sure how long they taught him, but he ended up moving to Texas for a few months. The sisters who are now serving in the area noticed his teaching record awhile back and have been wanting to call him to see if he was back in town. Well these two sisters, Sister Decker and Sister Wheeler were chatting one day with Sister Debenham who was one of the missionaries who taught Leroy (hopefully this is not confusing). Anyways, Sister Debenham randomly brought him up and the Chardon Sisters were like "Hey! We've been looking at his teaching record and have wanted to call him!" So....here in Kirtland Sister Debenham called up Leroy and found out he's back in Ohio! So cool how the Lord works. He knows his children and when we seek for his help he with guide us by the Spirit.
Leroy is amazing!!!!! He's from Texas, single guy with three beautiful daughters. Gabby who is 12, Shandra 11 and Bianca 9. We called him Friday, taught him Saturday and he came to church on Sunday! With all his girls!!! Leroy's been prepared for this. Experiences he's had in his life have opened his heart. He grew up Catholic but did not appreciate the hypocrisy he saw. He's been going to different churches around town but hasn't been satisfied with any of them so far. He has an incredible testimony of the Savior. He even spent Saturday morning here in Kirtland taking a tour of the sites with his girls. I guess he's been here before and loves it! Through out the lesson he kept saying that he just wants to be better! He wants to be better for his girls and wants to help them have a good life. Heavenly Father also inspired us to call up a young couple in the ward who just moved in to invite them to come with us. It turned out perfectly! Leroy is searching! When we invited him to be baptized he said yes when he knows these things are true. Missionary work is the best. I love seeing people happy! This Gospel is whats going to bring that happiness into his life. I know that to be true.
We also saw Barbara this week too! Remember her?? I wish I had time to tell you all about her!! We lost contact with her for about a month, then one day Sister Gambles first week she called us! I was shocked but very very happy! Apparently she got in a bad car accident. She's hurt her leg pretty bad. We've kept contact with her over the last couple weeks over the phone, dropped some cookies off but haven't been able to teach her. We've been praying and praying for help! Well when I was talking to her on Friday, I felt prompted to ask if she would be willing to receive a priesthood blessing. She jumped at the chance! The blessing was beautiful and powerful. After we asked how she felt and her response was "I just feel warm and safe." Sister Gamble and I recommitted her to met with us. She said yes! I love her. She's so amazing.
We've seen so many miracles this week. I wish I could tell you them all!
Oh and Collin unfortunately didn't come to church. He's nervous about this all. Nervous about change. I'll have to let you know what happens from here.
Missionary work is the Lords work. He's guiding us in everything we do! I've see it more and more everyday. Heavenly Father wants all his children to come back to him! I love the Gospel and know its true.
I love you family! I hope you all have a wonderful week! Don't forget to write me :)
Love,
Sister Houston
PS Sorry this is so long :)
Sister Houston's email:
September 6, 2011
Hey wonderful family,
Ah! What an amazing week!!!! Im excited to tell you about it! But first...how was your week? Did you all have a good Labor day? We had a very large feast here in Kirtland...like usual right :) I went home very full. It was a fun night. I love being around these Sisters and Senior Couples. They truly shine with the light of Christ. I hope you all had a fabulous Labor Day too!
Now......
Thursday we got some information about a man named Leroy who was a former investigator in one of the sisters areas, the Chardon area. Im not sure how long they taught him, but he ended up moving to Texas for a few months. The sisters who are now serving in the area noticed his teaching record awhile back and have been wanting to call him to see if he was back in town. Well these two sisters, Sister Decker and Sister Wheeler were chatting one day with Sister Debenham who was one of the missionaries who taught Leroy (hopefully this is not confusing). Anyways, Sister Debenham randomly brought him up and the Chardon Sisters were like "Hey! We've been looking at his teaching record and have wanted to call him!" So....here in Kirtland Sister Debenham called up Leroy and found out he's back in Ohio! So cool how the Lord works. He knows his children and when we seek for his help he with guide us by the Spirit.
Leroy is amazing!!!!! He's from Texas, single guy with three beautiful daughters. Gabby who is 12, Shandra 11 and Bianca 9. We called him Friday, taught him Saturday and he came to church on Sunday! With all his girls!!! Leroy's been prepared for this. Experiences he's had in his life have opened his heart. He grew up Catholic but did not appreciate the hypocrisy he saw. He's been going to different churches around town but hasn't been satisfied with any of them so far. He has an incredible testimony of the Savior. He even spent Saturday morning here in Kirtland taking a tour of the sites with his girls. I guess he's been here before and loves it! Through out the lesson he kept saying that he just wants to be better! He wants to be better for his girls and wants to help them have a good life. Heavenly Father also inspired us to call up a young couple in the ward who just moved in to invite them to come with us. It turned out perfectly! Leroy is searching! When we invited him to be baptized he said yes when he knows these things are true. Missionary work is the best. I love seeing people happy! This Gospel is whats going to bring that happiness into his life. I know that to be true.
We also saw Barbara this week too! Remember her?? I wish I had time to tell you all about her!! We lost contact with her for about a month, then one day Sister Gambles first week she called us! I was shocked but very very happy! Apparently she got in a bad car accident. She's hurt her leg pretty bad. We've kept contact with her over the last couple weeks over the phone, dropped some cookies off but haven't been able to teach her. We've been praying and praying for help! Well when I was talking to her on Friday, I felt prompted to ask if she would be willing to receive a priesthood blessing. She jumped at the chance! The blessing was beautiful and powerful. After we asked how she felt and her response was "I just feel warm and safe." Sister Gamble and I recommitted her to met with us. She said yes! I love her. She's so amazing.
We've seen so many miracles this week. I wish I could tell you them all!
Oh and Collin unfortunately didn't come to church. He's nervous about this all. Nervous about change. I'll have to let you know what happens from here.
Missionary work is the Lords work. He's guiding us in everything we do! I've see it more and more everyday. Heavenly Father wants all his children to come back to him! I love the Gospel and know its true.
I love you family! I hope you all have a wonderful week! Don't forget to write me :)
Love,
Sister Houston
PS Sorry this is so long :)
ANOTHER FABULOUS STORY
Sister Houston's email:
August 29, 2011
Hey family,
How are you all today??
Sister Gamble and I are doing great. We have had quite an eventful week. I have a story i want to tell you! Its a good one i promise :)
On Wednesday we spent the day in Garrettsville. Its a tiny town. Right in the middle is a strip of old looking stores and restaurants. We ate dinner there at Subway...yum...then went out to sit in our car to make phone calls and read our book of mormon. Well...there was a bench right in front of our car. I noticed a young man sitting there. He had wild crazy hair! I had the thought to go talk to him but felt it was a little to awkward so i ignored the thought. Selfish me. Our plans after dinner were to contact people around the area so when our dinner hour ended we headed down the street to park in the grocery store parking lot. Off we went and in the far distance i noticed the young man walking into Dairy Queen. We contacted around the area for a good 20 minutes or so. As we were rounding the corner heading back towards Subway again i saw the raggedy young man....again!!! I thought "ok ok ok fine! Obviously Heavenly Father wants us to talk to him." We were at a four way stop. He was across the street so we headed after him. He was walking to fast so I called after him...yes not something i particularly like to do...but he was nice and stopped to talk to us. This raggedy young man's name is Collin. He is 19 years old and this day happened to be his first day in town. He just moved from Columbia, South Carolina. We ended up talking to Collin for 45 minutes. He met missionaries in Columbia a couple years back. I think he maybe only met with them once or twice. He doesn't remember much of what they taught but says he remembers the feeling he had about it all was "surreal". Oh my Collin has been through a lot in his life. Part of the reason for moving to Ohio was because a gang was after him. At one point he started getting into religion and praying to God but then got involved in some mischief and was put in jail. He stopped praying after that. Now Collin just believes in spirituality, no Godly being and that Christ was a good man who walk to face of the earth. I never prayed so hard in my life!! Sister Gamble and I both tried our hardest to follow the spirit. I think I felt a little piece of what Heavenly Father feels for all his children. It was overwhelming. Collin agreed to come to church on Sunday. We even set up a ride for him but he ended up saying no to the ride. He preferred walking.
Well...church went on....during the middle of Relief Society Sister Watson came behind us and whispered "collins hear" WHAT!!!!! Yeah! he came to church!! He missed it all but he still came! Apparently he went the wrong way, was about to give up but then noticed pioneer trail which is where the church is so he kept on walking. Bro and Sister Watson, who were going to be the ones to pick him up, were sitting out in the hall when he walked in. Bro Watson our newly called ward mission learder is even from South Carolina! It All worked out perfectly. Collin ended up going home for lunch with the Watson family and plans on coming to church next sunday. I don't know what will all come out of this but im so grateful for this experience. I wanted to share it will you! everyday i am continually reminded how aware God and Jesus Christ are of each one of us! Collin may not know this just yet. Some day he will. I know he felt the love of the members. Its that sense of love that softens peoples hearts!
I know my savior lives and that this is his work. I will be forever grateful for this opportunity to serve him!
I hope you all enjoy the story :)
Have a fabulous week and dont forget to write me pretty please. I love you!!!!!!
Love,
Sister Houston
August 29, 2011
Hey family,
How are you all today??
Sister Gamble and I are doing great. We have had quite an eventful week. I have a story i want to tell you! Its a good one i promise :)
On Wednesday we spent the day in Garrettsville. Its a tiny town. Right in the middle is a strip of old looking stores and restaurants. We ate dinner there at Subway...yum...then went out to sit in our car to make phone calls and read our book of mormon. Well...there was a bench right in front of our car. I noticed a young man sitting there. He had wild crazy hair! I had the thought to go talk to him but felt it was a little to awkward so i ignored the thought. Selfish me. Our plans after dinner were to contact people around the area so when our dinner hour ended we headed down the street to park in the grocery store parking lot. Off we went and in the far distance i noticed the young man walking into Dairy Queen. We contacted around the area for a good 20 minutes or so. As we were rounding the corner heading back towards Subway again i saw the raggedy young man....again!!! I thought "ok ok ok fine! Obviously Heavenly Father wants us to talk to him." We were at a four way stop. He was across the street so we headed after him. He was walking to fast so I called after him...yes not something i particularly like to do...but he was nice and stopped to talk to us. This raggedy young man's name is Collin. He is 19 years old and this day happened to be his first day in town. He just moved from Columbia, South Carolina. We ended up talking to Collin for 45 minutes. He met missionaries in Columbia a couple years back. I think he maybe only met with them once or twice. He doesn't remember much of what they taught but says he remembers the feeling he had about it all was "surreal". Oh my Collin has been through a lot in his life. Part of the reason for moving to Ohio was because a gang was after him. At one point he started getting into religion and praying to God but then got involved in some mischief and was put in jail. He stopped praying after that. Now Collin just believes in spirituality, no Godly being and that Christ was a good man who walk to face of the earth. I never prayed so hard in my life!! Sister Gamble and I both tried our hardest to follow the spirit. I think I felt a little piece of what Heavenly Father feels for all his children. It was overwhelming. Collin agreed to come to church on Sunday. We even set up a ride for him but he ended up saying no to the ride. He preferred walking.
Well...church went on....during the middle of Relief Society Sister Watson came behind us and whispered "collins hear" WHAT!!!!! Yeah! he came to church!! He missed it all but he still came! Apparently he went the wrong way, was about to give up but then noticed pioneer trail which is where the church is so he kept on walking. Bro and Sister Watson, who were going to be the ones to pick him up, were sitting out in the hall when he walked in. Bro Watson our newly called ward mission learder is even from South Carolina! It All worked out perfectly. Collin ended up going home for lunch with the Watson family and plans on coming to church next sunday. I don't know what will all come out of this but im so grateful for this experience. I wanted to share it will you! everyday i am continually reminded how aware God and Jesus Christ are of each one of us! Collin may not know this just yet. Some day he will. I know he felt the love of the members. Its that sense of love that softens peoples hearts!
I know my savior lives and that this is his work. I will be forever grateful for this opportunity to serve him!
I hope you all enjoy the story :)
Have a fabulous week and dont forget to write me pretty please. I love you!!!!!!
Love,
Sister Houston
I FEEL HIS LOVE WRAPPED AROUND US
hello everyone.....so sorry i have gotten behind on Tori's blog again.....but life is moving way to fast these days!!! I am sure i wont be getting any new pictures before she heads home so i hope that you will still enjoy her emails.
Sister Houston's email
August 22, 2011
Hello again!!
I can't believe how fast this transfer is going. It needs to slow down.....wwwaayyy down!!!!
What a week!
Sister Gamble and I did A LOT of walking. To be exact....over 10 hours! Crazy huh. I haven't done that much tracting since being in Norwalk. We are dedicating our selves to this work and to the Lord! We want so badly to find those he is preparing. There are definitely better ways to find people to teach then tracting. We've also been prayerfully seeking ways to work with the ward members too. Heavenly Father has blessing us with strength, with joy, peace and comfort. Even though times can be tough! I feel his love wrapped around us. We had an awesome experience on Saturday.
Saturday was a wide open day, no lessons not even member meals. By the end of the day we tracted over 3 and a half hours. The night before in our goals, Sister Gamble and I set to teach one lesson and make that lesson a new investigator. When dinner came along at 5:00 we still hadn't found anyone to teach and our legs were pretty tired im not going to lie. We tried to talk to as many people as we could! We truly were doing our best. After dinner we said a prayer together that we would be able to find someone to teach.
Well, our very last stop-by was to a man named Ted. We met Ted last Saturday and he said we could stop by to give him a book of mormon. Oh my goodness!!!! It was so cool. He had just pulled in from work! We taught Ted the message of the Restoration right there in his drive way. I could feel Heavenly Father providing us with the words to say. Its the best feeling ever to know that God is aware of us all and that we are not alone in this work. Its his work!!
Then, yesterday at church Becca, Jim's girlfriend came up to us and told us some fabulous news about him! He's been really busy with football and getting ready with school but he's still reading the Book of Mormon. She said that after he read 2 Nephi 4 where Lehi dies that he felt this yearning to want to be on the straight and narrow path!!!! He wants to be baptized!!!!! Oh it was the best news ever! Now...i don't know when this baptism will be but to know that he knows that this is good, that its right, is just perfect.
I know this Gospel is true, that heavenly father is our loving father in heaven, that jesus christ is the savior and redeemer of the world!
I love you family! Always remember to pray. Your Father in Heaven wants to hear from you. He wants you to know of his great and perfect love for you. He can only do that if you come to him. He is there. Christ is there. What a wonderful thing to know.
Have a fabulous week and don't forget to write me pretty pretty please.
LOVE,
Sister Houston
Sister Gamble and I took a tour at the Johnson Home on Friday. It was a non-member couple. They have lived in Ohio all there life and often drove past the Home but never made the time to stop in! It was an older couple. They seemed to really like it. My favorite part was at the end
Sister Houston's email
August 22, 2011
Hello again!!
I can't believe how fast this transfer is going. It needs to slow down.....wwwaayyy down!!!!
What a week!
Sister Gamble and I did A LOT of walking. To be exact....over 10 hours! Crazy huh. I haven't done that much tracting since being in Norwalk. We are dedicating our selves to this work and to the Lord! We want so badly to find those he is preparing. There are definitely better ways to find people to teach then tracting. We've also been prayerfully seeking ways to work with the ward members too. Heavenly Father has blessing us with strength, with joy, peace and comfort. Even though times can be tough! I feel his love wrapped around us. We had an awesome experience on Saturday.
Saturday was a wide open day, no lessons not even member meals. By the end of the day we tracted over 3 and a half hours. The night before in our goals, Sister Gamble and I set to teach one lesson and make that lesson a new investigator. When dinner came along at 5:00 we still hadn't found anyone to teach and our legs were pretty tired im not going to lie. We tried to talk to as many people as we could! We truly were doing our best. After dinner we said a prayer together that we would be able to find someone to teach.
Well, our very last stop-by was to a man named Ted. We met Ted last Saturday and he said we could stop by to give him a book of mormon. Oh my goodness!!!! It was so cool. He had just pulled in from work! We taught Ted the message of the Restoration right there in his drive way. I could feel Heavenly Father providing us with the words to say. Its the best feeling ever to know that God is aware of us all and that we are not alone in this work. Its his work!!
Then, yesterday at church Becca, Jim's girlfriend came up to us and told us some fabulous news about him! He's been really busy with football and getting ready with school but he's still reading the Book of Mormon. She said that after he read 2 Nephi 4 where Lehi dies that he felt this yearning to want to be on the straight and narrow path!!!! He wants to be baptized!!!!! Oh it was the best news ever! Now...i don't know when this baptism will be but to know that he knows that this is good, that its right, is just perfect.
I know this Gospel is true, that heavenly father is our loving father in heaven, that jesus christ is the savior and redeemer of the world!
I love you family! Always remember to pray. Your Father in Heaven wants to hear from you. He wants you to know of his great and perfect love for you. He can only do that if you come to him. He is there. Christ is there. What a wonderful thing to know.
Have a fabulous week and don't forget to write me pretty pretty please.
LOVE,
Sister Houston
Sister Gamble and I took a tour at the Johnson Home on Friday. It was a non-member couple. They have lived in Ohio all there life and often drove past the Home but never made the time to stop in! It was an older couple. They seemed to really like it. My favorite part was at the end
Sunday, August 21, 2011
OUR ETERNAL DESTINY IS TO FOLLOW CHRIST
Sister Houston's email:
August 15, 2011
HELLO!!
How are you??
I sure do love all of you soooooooooo much.
Your perfect. God knew i would need you in my life!! Thanks for everything you always do for me.
I'm doing great!! Oh my what a challenging week though.
It seems that these Ohioans have become very very rude in the last couple weeks. What a struggle its been to get people to even talk to us and then to be nice when they do choose to talk to us. Oh my goodness what a struggle we have had!!
BUT, in all the struggle and hardships so many good things have come out of this week.
We had our last lesson with Jim on Thursday before he headed off to college. I think I told you last week that we've been having a hard time knowing how to help him recognize the Holy Ghost. Well....through A LOT of prayer and study, God prepared us in the ways we needed to be so we could help Jim. The spirit was there as we all, including the members present, shared scriptures, personal experience and testimony with him. His countenance changed by the end of the lesson. I knew he understood better. I knew that even though he doesn't understand everything, that good feeling was keeping him motivated to want to learn more and to want to make changes in his life. He is building Faith in Jesus Christ and becoming converted through the power of the spirit even though he might not recognize it fully just yet. God's love is the greatest thing we can ever feel in this life!!!! Jim is such a great kid! We had dinner with the members and him right after the lesson. While they were preparing it, Sister Gamble and I got to know him better and asked about his family. Then we invited him to ask his mom if she would learn about the Gospel and his face lite up! Gosh this Gospel is the greatest thing ever! It will change their lives! Hopefully his mom will be open :)
Now he is off at college and in the Elders hands. Hopefully we will see him again soon! He'll be back to visit once football slows down.
We also had a great experience that strengthened my testimony of the power of the Book of Mormon. There is a lady in the ward named Sylvia Barker. Sister Barker has had a very very rough life. She joined the church in 1988, was active for a while and then fell away. She's been active now for a couple years and went through the Temple a little less then a year ago. Sister Barker lives by her self in a scary neighborhood, has no car or job, and her family is not very supportive. She has been searching for a job for a really really long time. Sister Gamble and I had the great opportunity to go do service for her and have dinner. She was telling us how she is feeling so down and just doesn't understand why Heavenly Father wont help her out. She feels she's doing everything she can. Well...we shared a message about the book of mormon and felt prompted to ask her how she gained a testimony of it. She did what Moroni invites us to do...read, ponder the message and ask God if its true. An overwhelming feeling came over her and she knew! We felt prompted to re-invite her to do Moroni's invitation and promised if she did she would find the answer she needs. Yesterday at church she came up to us so happy and said she did it! She felt comforted by the Holy Ghost and was reassured that God's aware of her and loves her! Amazing huh? The Book of Mormon is true.
I love my life. I'm so blessed. God's aware of us and wants us to know of his great love! This life is a time to prepare ourselves for eternity. Our eternal destiny depends on our willingness to follow Jesus Christ! We are here to become perfected through His Atonement. I love that I've had this opportunity to share this with Ohio because as I've done so I've come to know for a surety the truthfulness of this gospel. It makes me happy to serve others. It makes me happy to know that all the unfair things of life can be made right through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. My testimony was strengthened this week.
I love you and hope you all have a fabulous week!!!!
LOVE,
Sister Houston
August 15, 2011
HELLO!!
How are you??
I sure do love all of you soooooooooo much.
Your perfect. God knew i would need you in my life!! Thanks for everything you always do for me.
I'm doing great!! Oh my what a challenging week though.
It seems that these Ohioans have become very very rude in the last couple weeks. What a struggle its been to get people to even talk to us and then to be nice when they do choose to talk to us. Oh my goodness what a struggle we have had!!
BUT, in all the struggle and hardships so many good things have come out of this week.
We had our last lesson with Jim on Thursday before he headed off to college. I think I told you last week that we've been having a hard time knowing how to help him recognize the Holy Ghost. Well....through A LOT of prayer and study, God prepared us in the ways we needed to be so we could help Jim. The spirit was there as we all, including the members present, shared scriptures, personal experience and testimony with him. His countenance changed by the end of the lesson. I knew he understood better. I knew that even though he doesn't understand everything, that good feeling was keeping him motivated to want to learn more and to want to make changes in his life. He is building Faith in Jesus Christ and becoming converted through the power of the spirit even though he might not recognize it fully just yet. God's love is the greatest thing we can ever feel in this life!!!! Jim is such a great kid! We had dinner with the members and him right after the lesson. While they were preparing it, Sister Gamble and I got to know him better and asked about his family. Then we invited him to ask his mom if she would learn about the Gospel and his face lite up! Gosh this Gospel is the greatest thing ever! It will change their lives! Hopefully his mom will be open :)
Now he is off at college and in the Elders hands. Hopefully we will see him again soon! He'll be back to visit once football slows down.
We also had a great experience that strengthened my testimony of the power of the Book of Mormon. There is a lady in the ward named Sylvia Barker. Sister Barker has had a very very rough life. She joined the church in 1988, was active for a while and then fell away. She's been active now for a couple years and went through the Temple a little less then a year ago. Sister Barker lives by her self in a scary neighborhood, has no car or job, and her family is not very supportive. She has been searching for a job for a really really long time. Sister Gamble and I had the great opportunity to go do service for her and have dinner. She was telling us how she is feeling so down and just doesn't understand why Heavenly Father wont help her out. She feels she's doing everything she can. Well...we shared a message about the book of mormon and felt prompted to ask her how she gained a testimony of it. She did what Moroni invites us to do...read, ponder the message and ask God if its true. An overwhelming feeling came over her and she knew! We felt prompted to re-invite her to do Moroni's invitation and promised if she did she would find the answer she needs. Yesterday at church she came up to us so happy and said she did it! She felt comforted by the Holy Ghost and was reassured that God's aware of her and loves her! Amazing huh? The Book of Mormon is true.
I love my life. I'm so blessed. God's aware of us and wants us to know of his great love! This life is a time to prepare ourselves for eternity. Our eternal destiny depends on our willingness to follow Jesus Christ! We are here to become perfected through His Atonement. I love that I've had this opportunity to share this with Ohio because as I've done so I've come to know for a surety the truthfulness of this gospel. It makes me happy to serve others. It makes me happy to know that all the unfair things of life can be made right through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. My testimony was strengthened this week.
I love you and hope you all have a fabulous week!!!!
LOVE,
Sister Houston
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