week of miracles

 I got to go to my first mission leadership council and elder hymas from the 70 joined us and it was SO awesome!  I forget how lucky I am to have so many opportunities to council with and be taught by some of the greatest leaders in the world.  Anyways, here is the rest. It has surely been a week of miracles, so I'll just jump right in and tell you all about it. 

 

The newest member of the Harrison Bay ward, Hannah Abercrombie was baptized this Saturday!  Leading up to her baptism, everything that she couldn't possibly been attacked with struck in one single week.  Tuesday, she came home to find her brothers 1.5 year old baby who has major brain injury and isn't the highest functioning sitting on her front porch.  Wednesday, her house caught on fire and Thursday, she got in a fight with her family about the church and came to her baptismal interview dripping blood, from being pushed down the outside stairs of her mothers home and getting cut up from a barbwire fence.  Sister Hatch and I being a little overwhelmed, felt like we should ask her if she wanted to push her baptism back a little bit until things calmed down and she explained that it was entirely obvious how powerful Satan really is and how nothing he could do stop her from being baptized.  Hannah truly was our two week miracle.  I had always heard about missionaries finding, teaching and baptizing in 2 weeks but I never thought I would expirience it myself.  It was evident that the Lord had been preparing her but not only that, preparing the ward to recieve her in as a new family member to this ward because they honestly couldn't have been more welcoming as members and it couldn't have happened without them.  I am still amazed at the strength and courage that Hannah has, and also how quick the ward was to jump to her aid when she needed help. 

 

The actual day of the baptism another miracle followed.  Hannahs baptism was set to be at four, and loosing track of time and not thinking too much about it, we turned on the font around 2:55.  Hannah arrived at about 30 minutes later and we decied to go check the font to see the water had not even reached the top of the very first step, hitting just above my ankle.  We starting stressing a bit and decided we'd sit kneel down, right there on the bathroom floor and pray for a miracle.  Sister Hatch offered such a sincere prayer, pleading that the water would be high enough for Hannah to be baptized. We decided we'd move the program into the chapel allowing more time for the water to fill until the actual ceremony when bishop walks in, 2 minutes before four and asked us why we were having it in the Chapel when we explained to him that the water needed to fill.  He looked at us and said, "Sisters! I don't know how full you are expecting it to be, but it's fine!"  We ran in the relief society room, and sure enough, the font had been entirely filled.  There was no way on earth that in those short 27 minutes, the font had filled at the rate it was going without the Lords hand being in it all.  I KNOW that the Lord answered our prayers that day.  I know that it was by no chance or coincidence that there had been enough water for Hannah to be baptized.

 

I guess that about sums up the majority of our week.  I truly have seen the Lords hand in every aspect of our work this week.  To top it off, I was able to stay in my area this week for exchanges as a sweet sister joined me and when I woke up that morning, I realized how sick I was. I just prayed that we would be able to make it to all our planned appointments that day and I would have the strength to work.  Although the Lord didn't completely take away my sickness (and quite frankly, I didn't expect him too), he allowed me to be able to teach and go to every single appointment.  Somehow, everytime I walked into a home, it seemed as if it was all taken away for the time being, not even thinking about it again until we would walk out of a home and I was quickly reminded that I was sick as I threw up again.  It was incredible to me that the Lord allowed me to be well enough to teach and just forget about it long enough that his work may still be accomplished.  I love this work with all my heart and I know my feelings about it will never change.

Love you!

 

Love,

Sister Thiriot