TODAY will be a miracle!!!

TODAY will be a miracle

Every morning this week as Sister Olsen and I woke up, we looked at each other and would say: "Sister, this day is going to be a miracle." It is absolutely incredible what the Lord will do when you have a little bit of faith. This area hasn't had a baptism in about 8 months, and there is one this weekend and one next weekend, for two sweet women who I have had the priviledge of getting to know:) We found three new investigators this week, which is almost unheard of. And my goodness, they are amazing!

We have John, the Special-Ed Teacher who enjoys hot yoga. I adore him. Hot yoga?

We have Flora, the lovely Latino lady who already wants to be baptized. I asked her on the first lesson about it and she said: "I would love that. Following Jesus and being baptized in His name is exactly what I need." What? FLORA! 

And we have Juan, who is probably the most Christ-like person I've ever met. Here's the story about him: I had to pee. I'm trying to drink more water, because diet coke is bad for you, you know!! So I drag my companion to a gas station and decide to go buy myself a little snack. We finally get back in the car to go tracting again, when up walks a man. He knocks on my window, shakes my hand, and asks me to come teach him because he wants to know about the Mormon church. 

I found that as I believed that every place I went to this week had someone who desperately needed what I had to say, the Lord placed those people in my path.

Never doubt when I have to pee again.

We taught lessons this week like never before. We were running from lesson to lesson to lesson every day, and people wanted to hear what we had to say. It was amazing! I don't understand why getting people to listen is hard on missions, but maybe that's just because I'm new and dumb and still believe everyone is dying to talk to me:) I think I'll keep that attitude for the next 16 months:)

I was so thrilled for the amazing week it was that one night I was doing a little dance in the kitchen as I reported to our district leaders the success and incredible people of the day. In the midst of this little jig, my foot found a nail and lo and behold, a piece of my toe is missing. We're talking it bled through my sock, and everything else it touched. So now I will have a scarred toe due to too much excitment. My district leader liked that story.

Street contacting and tracting is maybe my favorite thing in the world. San Francisco is a world of its own! I tried to communicate with a Spanish lady in Portuguese this week, which was ugly. I did not try to communicate with the Chinese people, but I smiled at them and gave them stuff. I just am in love with talking to people, and I gained a lot of confidence this week through the Lord in being bold. I love introducing myself as a representative of Jesus Christ, and I love just....just listening to their stories. There is always a common denominator, and that's that Jesus Christ is the answer! 

I'm incredibly inspired, everyday, that the Lord saw me as one worthy to talk with others about this message. I feel deeply inadequate. The people I talk to on the street teach me so much, so so so much.

That being said, I had doors slammed in my face this week, and I was rejected very rudely a few times. I decided to think that it is funny.

So every time someone is mean to me, I just smile and smile and ask again if they would like me to do anything for them. Then I smile and smile some more and they are so confused and then I try to sqeeze in the name Jesus Christ before shaking their hand and walking away. I want people to at least associate that wonderful name with a smile from some strange person in a skirt.

One of the most amazing experiences this week was going to an addiction recovery class with a young man we're working on helping. I sat in the back and honestly felt unworthy to be there, because the people who were talking and who were trying to overcome really, really hard things had the most amazing testimonies of the Atonement I have ever heard. I was getting all teary because....goodness, they get it! And the Atonement is for broken people, and it is for them time and time again. 

I learned a little bit more about teaching by the Spirit this week. We were teaching one man who is confused beyond confused about his life, and an exact scripture came to me. I shared it with him and he just about broke down. "Sister Brooks. You don't know how nice it feels to know that. Thank you, thank you, thank you." I'm not smart enough to on-the-spot come up with these things on my own! But the Spirit helped me know what this man needed, and I want to always try to listen.

And one last amazing experience: (honestly, this week was jam-packed with people who came up to us asking if they could be taught, of people calling us "angels" and wanting to be baptized the first time we talked to them, and of simple prayers and testimonies of the most amazing people. The Lord is so good that I can't even put into words how generous He has been to us.) There is a sweet, dear old man who doesn't like anything religious, but he lovesssss when we sing hymns. So we visit him and his wife, and sing them hymns every week and share a message in between. This week, I felt the Spirit so strongly as I bore my testimony straight to him about the Savior. I know he felt it, I just know it. And this Thursday, he agreed to meet us at the church so that I can play the piano for him and sing him church songs. I think something wonderful will happen:)

I had a cute autistic boy this week walk up to me and ask for a business card. I gave him a Mormon.org card and then he got really close to my face and said all slow and with a huge grin: "I'm gonna calll you up, and I'm gonna take youuu out on a DATE!" It was maybe the most darling thing I've ever heard. 

I decided that I love old people, and me and Sister Oleson are going to this lovely old folks home every Wednesday now to paint the ladies nails and chat with them. They all want to know who we are and why we're helping:) There are the cutest women in the world. 

Well, I know that Jesus Christ is the Savoir of the world. I know that so much. I know that He listens to prayers, and probably listens harder to a lot of the prayers the addicts to meth say and the person who is scared to pray says. I feel so blessed to be here:) I love you all. Thanks for being the best best best best. And keep feeding the missionaries.

                                 Kaylee:)