Family,

This week in the beautiful city of Olympia has been a little bazaar! 50-60 degree weather ALL week and sunshine EVERYDAY!

You don't feel like you are in Washington at all. Maybe, this why so many people love it here? When the weather is good-it's really good. Sis. Brown and I even went tracting without coats on Saturday :D I guess its a nice little treat from our torture week from the ice storm. We are still doing "clean-up" a couple times a week. There are so many trees and tree branches that are still down and all over the place. If it was Christmas someone could make bank off the evergreen leaves to make wreaths lol! It's a mess. I will have to say that I don't' mind natural disasters. Especially ones that don't hurt anyone-this one was just inconvenient. But for 1. it opened peoples eyes to how prepared they were and 2. It gives members of the church and missionaries opportunities to do service. There were a few cool experiences that we had to people allowing us to help them clean up there yard. And no kidding they all came out with their wallets thinking they had to pay us :( sad. One old man that had some pretty bad damage was in tears with the help that he received. It was very heart warming and a good reminder of why we do service. It opens/softens peoples hearts to the love that there Heavenly Father has for each of them.

Besides that this week has been a zoo! I don't think I have had a busier week on my mission and poor sis. brown is trying so hard to keep up with it all. I try not to let her see me overwhelmed because I learned if she does then she gets really nervous, so I just keep that to myself now! :) It has been a lot of fun training. Its fun to remember how distraught I was when I first came out and how blind sided I was of how a mission was "really" to be. When new missionaries come out they think that they are going to have these instant connections with the people, they will be the greatest teacher, and convert everyone and anyone. Unfortunately that is not how it works. Just like anything in life you have to work at it and work hard for it. I have to remind Sister Brown that the enjoyment will come one day. She loves it here and loves her mission, but she is used to being a perfectionist and perfection will not come in a transfer on your mission. I still have no idea what I'm doing half the time haha! I have to remind her that it is when you learn to rely on the Lord in everything you do that he will change you through his grace and the atonement. I have this love for these people that is so natural and pure that I know could only come through Christ. I have learned that Grace is something that carries us everyday. It's not after all we do then grace saves us, its in everything we do.

Yesterday at church Radmilla (my serbian recent convert) all the sudden got really pale and said she couldn't breath. We were in RS and it was packed, but not really hot. We took her outside and she passed out and went totally stiff. I just broke down and started crying because I thought she was gone, it was so scary. I ran into the church and bro. Abbot, a doctor, was standing right there and came outside to help her. She finally came back to us and said she couldn't breath. After a few min. her color started coming back and her stubbornness and spunk then we knew she was going to be just fine.

Then the Sanvig family came to church!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And yes, that is how excited it truly was. I love this family way to much for some reason and when I saw them keep this commitment it was huge. And they loved it. Olivia and Noah (the kidos) both saw friends they knew horray!

We also started teaching a man named Peter. He was a referral from the elders. He says he feels like he is in his own apostasy right now and we came to give him the truth! He already knows the book of Mormon is the word of God because he feels how humble the people are. ahhh! Now why can't everyone see that?

Anyway, I am excited to teach these people. We def. can not do it without the Lord by outside. I need his help more than ever now and He always finds a way to assure me He is there!

And I promise you He will do that in every one's lives if we will just allow him too! I know the Book of Mormon is true and Jesus is real and I hope you have a wonderful week! Remember....Miracles happen everyday!

I love you all,

Sister Phillips