Valentine's week

2-17-14
Dear Family...
    Well, life is crazy...as usual. Missionary work is intense, long, hard, awesome, and fun!
    This week being Valentine’s day and presidents day weekend, meant that we had a gazillion cancellations. Rough. Really rough. 


Lots of cancelled appointments on Valentine's Day
makes planning hard.

     I'm not going to lie, I had a bit of a rough week. I was just feeling kind of "Meh." because we had so many lessons fall through this week. It was one of those inadequate feelings that wouldn't go away even though I knew it was coming from the adversary. I just felt like I was running into stone walls with people and it wasn't fun. But then Saturday night we had dinner at a less active's house whose husband isn't LDS. He wasn't home, but she made us Rib-eye steak and those cheese rolls from Red-Lobster that mom makes and she made asparagus and potatoes and I loved it, because for the first time I felt like I was actually eating a meal that felt like home! Steak! Nobody ever makes us steak, and we used to eat it all the time at home! But this lady, her name is T and she is in her late 50's early 60's and she has this problem where her bones are just deteriorating and she is in pain a lot.  She is very social and hates that her body slows her down. But we didn't know that. So I shared a spiritual thought after dinner, and the Spirit suddenly entered the room. It was so strong. I was sharing different quotes from "An High Priest of Good Things to Come" By Jeffery R. Holland, and I looked up and she was just crying and my companion was crying. I was saying something she needed to hear from our Heavenly Father. She was just crying and saying over and over how inspired I was, and asking how I had known what she needed. I was in awe. I hadn't thought much of it, I had just picked a few spiritual thoughts that I had done before that had been nice in the past, but this was exactly what she needed to hear. I feel so humbled to have been the means of answering somebody's prayer. I felt so grateful to my Father in Heaven. I had been feeling like a bad teacher, and suddenly He decided to prove what He could do through me... It doesn't matter if I'm the good teacher...because He's the teacher, not me. I'm just a person, with a mouth. A mouth that I've given Him to fill with words He wants me to say. 



Lenise's bedroom corner!

    Also this week, (funny story!) We were teaching the two cousins who we put on date for baptism last week. The older one is 16 and his name is R, and his younger cousin is named Remo and he is 9. Remo is SOOOO smart!!! We did the restoration with them and invited them to be baptized, then this week we came back to visit them and I was so baffled by Remo. Before we started the lesson we asked if they had any questions. Remo's hand shot into the air! He said "What's that tree thing that they talk about in the Book of Mormon? With the fruit?" and we just stared at him for a second. "The tree of life?" I asked. "Yeah! That one!" he said. We just stared at him. "You've already made it to chapter 8 in the Book of Mormon since we last saw you??" I asked. Then he said: "No, I'm on chapter 13." Bahaha! We about died laughing! The kid is 9 years old! 9!!! I didn't even know how to read the BOM when I was that age! Then when Sis J started reciting the First Vision, he started reciting it with her!!!! Holy cow! That is kid is amazing! He's had a rough life, but he is so interested in the church and he has a great support system now so we are so excited for them to be baptized next month!  



Muddy boots after snow melted.

We miss this happy face.

     Then this Sunday I sang in the YSA sacrament meeting. It was "In Sacred Grove" by Janice Kapp Perry, and it is such a gorgeous song. I sang it with a nonmember named Alyssa, who was introduced to us by a YSA named H. She is an awesome RM who is super into missionary work. A wouldn't agree to meet with the missionaries but she would go to church with H sometimes, and she wanted to sing in sacrament meeting. So then H found out that I could sing and asked if I would do a duet with her. The crazy thing is that A chose the song! It's all about Joseph Smith and the first vision. Then Sis J had an epiphany that I should recite the first vision during the song. So we created a bridge and then I recited then started singing my part. The spirit was so strong as we sang in church...after I recited it the words go “I too have asked of God as Joseph did. That I might learn the truth of all he said, In quiet moments when my heart is full, he sends a witness to my soul. Lord help me share these things that I believe. Lead me to willing hearts who will receive. Then let the spirit through me testify, that they may find the narrow way." It was incredible! I love singing and it's the best way that I share my testimony. A totally felt it because after we were done singing for the ward I asked if she would be willing to meet with us and she said YES!!!!  It was the best!
     It was super muddy this week because of all the snow melt...so my boots look GROSS!!! Mud is all over our car too! We even lost our phone in the mud when our car got stuck and had to back track and search through all the boggy mud that we drove through...that was fun....
      Well I love you all and miss you to pieces!!! I hope you all had a happy Singles Awareness day! I know I did! I'm a missionary!
     Thanks for everything you've done for me and for all the valentines and fun pictures and stories! I love them all! I love you all and pray for you every day.
Love Forever,
Sister Lenise Volmer