Week #49

Hey Hey Everybody!!

Another great week in the YSA! We have seen so many amazing miracles.
Last week while I was on another exchange, Sister Barlow met a man
named Neil on campus. We had a lesson with him this week and we're
able to set a baptismal date with him. He came to institute Thursday
and loved it. He was suppose to come to church yesterday but didn't
end up showing up. He is so solid though! When we told him that when
we are resurrected our bodies and our spirits will never be separated,
his eyes got all big and he told us that is the coolest thing he has
ever heard. It is amazing when you get to teach people with such soft
hearts and they soak up every piece of doctrine!

Friday we went to downtown Tampa for specialized missionary training.
All the new missionaries attend their first transfer. It is basically
everything you need to know about missionary work shoved into 9 hours.
My favorite part of the day was contacting down town! I was able to
go with Hermana Scanlin and she is a power house!! We walked along the
Hillsborough river on the board walk. There were a few elders who were
in front of us. We would walk up to someone and they would immediately
tell us they just barely talked to the Elders and that we were too
slow! We decided to turn down a different road. We saw a girl sitting
at a table smoking a cigarette. She looked so tired and worn out! We
started to talk with her and found out that she is a single mom of two
little girls. We taught her about families and how they can be
together forever. She lite up and asked where she could find a church
that taught this. We told her we were missionaries for the church and
that there was one she could attend about 2 miles away from where she
was living. All I can say is that this gospel is for EVERYONE! It is
here to make us happy. We don't have time to take it for granted! At
the end of specialized missionary training all the missionaries had
the opportunity to bear their testimony. It was amazing to feel the
spirit that filled the chapel as each missionary bore their testimony
of the Savior!

There is a lot of change coming to the YSA! This past Sunday we got a
new Bishop called. Bishop Harris has been serving as bishop of the
Tampa Bay YSA for the last 5 1/2 years! He and his wife bore their
testimonies and I definitely shed a tear or two.... or three! It is
amazing to see how much you can learn from those around you. Bishop
has taught me how to have fun even during the hard times. Sister
Harris has taught me how to serve and genuinely care about people.
They are going to be missed, but we are so excited for Bishop
Stevenson. His whole mindset is missionary work. We are super pumped
about that! I was asked to play the piano in sacrament and we
picked out all the songs for sacrament meeting before hand. Well Erin
is up there ready to start the closing song and I started playing when
all of a sudden President Howell gets up to the podium. If you can
imagine a record screeching to a stop..... that's what happened. He
asked if we could sing the Spirit of God instead of Nearer My God to
thee. Haha my heart sank as he turned to me and said "Sister do you think
you can play that?" Haha well I guess we'll see!  It went just fine.
The congregation sang loud and the spirit drowned out the notes I
missed! Life as a missionary is great and so unknown!

We have taught the Plan of Salvation quite a bit this week and I came
across this quote by Elder Oaks. "Final Judgment is not just an
evaluation of a sum total of good and evil acts--what we have done. It
is an acknowledgment of the final effect of our acts and
thoughts--what we have become. It is not enough for anyone just to go
through the motions. The commandments, ordinances, and covenants of
the gospel are not a list of deposits required to be made in some
heavenly account. The gospel of Jesus Christ is a plan that shows us
how to become what our Heavenly Father desires us to become." 

I have pondered a lot this week on the challenge to become.
As we teach the Plan of salvation as missionaries, we help others
understand the importance of eternal progression. We help them
understand that over the years the world continues to change this plan
and distort the truth. Satan even gets into the hearts of the members
of the church and we start to live a check list kind of life. We
shouldn't go to church, partake of the sacrament, read our scriptures,
or attend the temple just because it is in our daily routine. We
should do these things to help us become more like our Father in
Heaven and have real intent behind our actions. Being able to teach
the Plan of Salvation I know that this is the only plan that will
enable us to be in the presence of God one day!! I just love it! I
love this plan! I love this gospel!!

Love,
Sister Kenzie Graham