Grace is Amazing

Oh man, thank you everyone for your emails!  I love you all so much!

I am so happy this week!  I don't even know what is making the difference...  I think it might be because I am starting to understand and love the doctrine of the atonement more thoroughly in my life!

I read the talk from conference by Elder James J Hamula, and it changed my life!!!  Did you know that when you take the bread that is significance and gratitude for the gift we all have of Resurrection?  Part of Resurrection is being able to see God for a time to receive judgment.  Thus we will all be there until we are able to take claim on the second and next gift of Eternal Life, which is represented by the water which is symbolic of Christ's blood spilt for our transgressions.  I did not know why we did the two separate parts, nor did I know the significance of the order until this week.  I further learned that because it is the Holy Ghost that sanctifies and cleanses us, that is how we access Christ's grace!!!! We do not take the sacrament when we have reached perfection.  We take it in our weakness with our broken hearts willing to change, and then the Holy Ghost cleanses us and sanctifies us and makes us better.  That is accepting grace.  That is letting the enabling power of the atonement have affect in our lives.  And I think that grace comes through the whole week, not just in that day or in that moment, but it comes as we act and become better because of the promptings, influence, and constant companionship of the Holy Ghost.

I understood parts/much of this in my head before, but I think I really understood it in my heart this week.  YES.

Then I learned a ton more amazing doctrine about the Millennium in gospel principles.  Let's just say this: God is good and has A PERFECT plan for us!

This gospel is the greatest, and if there is anything we are frustrated with, I would venture to say it is because we do not understand fully in our hearts or in our heads and we need to humble ourselves to understand.

Now for the happenings of the week:

-On Wednesday we swapped our house in Sunrise with the Sunrise Rock Elders for an apartment in Lewvan.  Honestly, I might even like the apartment better (even though our house was great).  It was a good trade.

-We went to help the YW president serve in the temple for youth baptisms.  We were going to hand out towels and things, but they had enough people serving so we were able to do baptisms!  Yes.  I appreciate this ordinance SO much more after being on a mission.

-We got to teach Blanca (our Columbian investigator) after not getting in with her four about a month!  It was a do-or-die prayer: Either we teach her now or we drop her, so if this is what she needs right now, please let it happen.  And it did.  And Blanca testified to us that her heart is filled when she reads the Book of Mormon.  So great!

-Ron and Shanon came to church!!!!!!!  They are incredible.  They walked for an HOUR in the cold to get there!!!!  That, my friends, is dedication.  I am SO excited for them and the covenants they are soon going to be making in their life.

Biggest miracle of the week might have been on Thursday, driving to Wascana Street on our way to see a less active and on our way we got a call from an elder who had previously served in Lewvan who gave us a referral for a less active mom and her daughters who lived on, you guessed it, Wascana Street, one block down.   So we went and saw them right then, and the mom felt the spirit pour into her soul and the girls accepted the invitation to be baptized.  They probably have a lot of work to do, and a long way to grow, but I know that we met them for a reason!

I am so grateful to be serving in an area with a temple!!!!!!!!  We are able to go and serve there so often, and it is a blessing to my life!  I am grateful for the difference I can see in the heart of the members because it is here.   There is so much peace and understanding and appreciation of the covenants in this city because the people do not take this gift for granted!

I am grateful for your constant love and support!  Thank you!

Love, bigger and better than ever, and ALWAYS,

Sister Heidi Hill

We made a scavenger hunt with lots of random things we had in our house and lots of clues for the elders when they arrived at their new place.  Ha ha :)

Here is an example. This was our last clue but we wanted to throw them off.

This is Sister Christensen and a Shih Tzu I met this week named Maggie!!!!  Reminds me of another dog of a very similar breed with a very similar name... :)

Boots and Toques and Mittens All Around

I feel so blessed in teaching Ron and Shannon and their family right now!  This week, Shannon invited their eight year old son Isaac to be baptized with them, and he accepted.  Ron and Shannon are getting married, and baptized on December 13th.  Then they are receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost on the next day.  They are so beautiful!  And they are excited to tell their friends and family all about it!  Yay!!!! :)

We had a lesson with them last night on tithing.  Those two are amazing!  They full-heartedly accepted and are excited to pay their tithing!  Ron and Shannon don't have much, but they do have Faith in the Lord. Bro Lafontaine came with us, and it was amazing because he, Ron and Shannon are all native.  Bro Lafontaine was able to testify to them of the Book of Mormon being about their people, and how the gospel and the plan of salvation further explain Native ceremonies and help them to make more sense.  Super neat.

Once again, due to last minute emergencies, no investigators made it to church this week, but we were able to teach a new investigator.  He is blind, very smart, & kind and he has read up on many of the religions out there.  He is interested to learn what more we have to offer.  He had lots of books on witchcraft, so that was interesting, but it was all good.

Life is crazy trying to manage two wards.  We go to church, talk, have a ward core, eat lunch, and do it all over again, second ward core included.  It's very stressful.  But I think that's just Satan’s way of trying to weigh me down.  It doesn't need to be stressful.  It can be uplifting.  It was interesting, someone made the comment, "I think the more you are in a position to affect people's lives in a meaningful way, the more Satan tries to pull you down."  Sometimes I feel like I'm letting one of the ward’s down, or that people don't like me because I'm working with both wards now.  It's RIDICULOUS, I know.  No one actually thinks that, and it's just the adversary!  But, I need my heart to believe that, and that's what I'm working on.  I'll be fine, don't worry.

Lots of other miracles include: 

-Being able to play an old lady's guitar and her Peruvian Charango (Not sure how you spell that, but it was a ten stringed instrument!)  Her son, who is also less active was there and really enjoyed my music.  They said that I strummed and tuned the guitar differently, but they still really liked it.  He also said he is willing to take her to church whenever she wants, although he refuses to come in.

-NINE less actives coming to church!!!!! (Including our old lady. :))

-The Lewvan Primary program!!! (I really want Polynesian children)

-We were able to see the Little Mermaid because two Sunrise YW were in it!

-We went through the TEMPLE on Wednesday!

-Sister Porter moved to Moose Jaw and I am her Sister Training Leader!

-Sister Christensen is a wonderful companion that has helped me so much!

I am so happy to be working with so many wonderful people.  They are changing me and helping me learn every single day.

Love you tons!

Sister Heidi Hill

"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised"  Luke 4:18. This is my new theme.  LOVE IT!  I am here to help Him heal hearts, allow liberty, and bring VISION to the blind.