Family,

It's good to be a Missionary! This week has been full of lots of walking, talking, door knocking, difficulties and miracles.

To start off, HAPPY BIRHTDAY MOM! I hope you had a great day :)

This week we had a lot of teaching opportunities which went really well. This girl named Makayla who we started teaching is a gem! She is 17 and getting ready to enter her senior year of High School next week. We met her walking down the street one day-got her information and didn't really think to much after that. We went to follow up with her and found out her entire family in Jehovah Witness's but her. We asked her if she could ever see her self becoming one and she said, 'Umm No, I like my birthday!" It was funny. She has a little sister named, Jalilla who is hilarious. Their family is great. We met her mom the last week and she approved of us teaching her! She really understands the doctrine and is so eager and ready to receive the gospel.
I love teaching her because I feel like I can really relate to her. Hopefully one day there mom will allow them to all come to church :)

Do you remember Kim? Kim was baptized this Saturday and confirmed on Sunday. It was great to see Kim make this change in her life so quickly. We met her about three weeks ago and as soon as we started teaching her she said she knew that it had to be true by the way she felt and the way the people treated her. That was just the first week.
Kim progressed so fast each week after. She grabbed on to every principle of the Gospel and ACTED upon it. I was so surprised by her progress and the special spirit that changed in her. Kim lost her husband about 2 months ago and before we met her she hardly could pick herself up and get out of bed. Now- she wakes up no problem for 9 o'clock church and stays for all three hours. Kim was at her lowest of low and I know that allowed for the spirit to talk to her and impress upon her heart the courage to keep going! I learned from her to keep it simple! She listened, then prayed to ask, and she got her answer. She had the Faith to know that God sent us for a reason and she wanted to figure it out. And she did!

"The Gospel is Beautifully Simple, and Simply Beautiful."

This whole week I have had a lot of different things upon my mind and heart, which leads to stress and worry. Sister Baylon and I have both been battling our different wars and this week it seems to me intensified. Trying to help investigators resolve their concerns, finding new people to teach, Investigators dropping us, feeling comfortable in a new area and getting the ward more involved is some of it. But out of all of the tares and road bumps, the Lord never ceases to show us his tender mercies when we are being obedient and diligent.

This Sunday I was all smiles after a long hard week. First Kim was baptized and confirmed and the Relief Society instantly swooped her right up! Gulian who was just baptized 2 weeks ago, received the Aaronic Priesthood and is going to the temple in two weeks, Makayla went to church for the first time and we received two great referrals :) The greatest part out of all of that was the little things that happened were tailored just for me from our Heavenly Father.

How grateful I am to know that not only does He Live, but he gives, cares, and loves unconditionally! I love you all and always remember to look for the hand of God being witnessed in your life EVERYDAY.

Sister Phillips

ps. Oh yes I almost forgot. I hit my big 1yr. mark last week-so what did we do? We had a burn party at our bishops :)
Oh and then while we were tracting we found this little library where people can take a book and then put one of theirs in return. So we decided to give them the BEST book in the world-The Book of Mormon!