Christmas Miracles:)

This week I studied how we need to pray to know the truth through the Holy Ghost! 

Well prayers need to be effortful! The amount of times that I read phrases like "give ourselves continually" (acts 6:4), "laboring fervently" (col. 4:12), "pour our their hearts" (mosiah 24:12), or "with all energy of heart" (moroni 7:45) was almost overwhelming. 

As a missionary, I pray a lot- when I wake up, before and after each study session, every time I leave the house, before I eat, before lessons, to start a lesson, to end a lesson, to go to sleep... and the words I say get very repetitive. I can mean the words I'm saying and still not be putting a whole lot of effort into my prayers, because I still want the same things, and need that same divine help, but the effort isn't there. This is the advice my mission president's wife, Sister Farley, said: "stay on your knees, until the effort is there" and stay there till your heart has been poured out. God already knows what we need, and want- but we have to put the effort in to receive the help we need. 

When it comes to receiving truth, through Prayer, and real intent, you will recieve an answer. And the truth that is confirmed won't be only true for an hour, or a week- it's true for eternity.

There were so many Christmas miracles this week...

First... IT SNOWED!!! It didn't stick, but it snowed on Thursday! 

We helped at salvation army again, passing out the angel tree gifts to the families, and felt good to be giving.

I went on exchanges this week, and I got to go knocking a little! It was freezing cold (Texas freezing, not Utah freezing). I was in the sisters area- an English area, and felt the need to bring my Spanish book of Mormon! The person we were going to visit didn't actually have an apartment number but I had a thought to walk one direction and knock this door! We knocked and this guy in English said "let me go get the big boss." All the sudden we were thinking what did we just get ourselves into- and why is he getting the boss- haha who does he think we are! But a lady opened the door a minute later and spoke in Spanish and we ended up just sharing a little Christmas message and said we would come back!

Christmas morning: I somehow convinced my companion hna Peck to wake up 15 minutes early with me so I didn't break rules so I could make breakfast for us and the other sisters we live with! I made some German pancakes with sausage and bacon! I read a really cute letter from mom and I got kinda sad since I wasn't with family- because that's the best part of the holidays- but once I got to church, a member that we have gotten really close with, came and told us that we needed to make sure to visit them that night. It was just such a reminder that I have so many things to be happy about, and I am so lucky to be in a ward where I know so many of the members, and have such good relationships with so many of them! 

We had lunch with the bishop and his wife after church and they had this punch that had fruit in it, and it also had sugarcane... they chew it for a while until the taste and juice is out, and then they spit it out. It's kinda like eating wood... it tasted kinda weird. I don't know if I will do that again! 

I made arribiatta for dinner! Which was so fun! It's so nice to be able to cook! The kitchen will always be busy when I get home!

My question of the week is: What spiritual gifts have you been given?