Mar 17:

Querida familia & amigos,

The weeks keep flying by! Before I know it, it will be June and Danica will be in the mission field!

Here are some wise words from President S, my mission president:

"He is building His kingdom; He is building us. He will not build us against our wills; we must surrender to His wisdom and grace and mercy; we must believe that He knows what He is doing, and trust in Him "perfectly" and "completely" (2 Nephi 9:23). To surrender to Him is to gain the greatest victory."

I think one of the greatest blessings that has come from my missionary service so far is the way the Lord is teaching me and helping me to understand Him more fully. I hope to be able to surrender my will to His more fully.

Last Tuesday we did exchanges with the Sister Training Leaders. Because neither my companion nor I are Spanish speaking, rather than one of them coming here and one of us going to their area (a Spanish area), they both came to our area. So we had double the missionaries working in Merrilltown that day. It was a really neat experience and we were able to talk to a lot of people and teach several lessons that day.

One miracle I have seen these past few weeks is a big increase in referrals! As we have practiced seeking referrals, made plans, and prayed specifically for help before going into dinner appointments, we have received more member referrals than I ever have on my mission! We have spent a good amount of time contacting these referrals (generally neighbors of members).

Our recent convert, Mi, has gone through some really trying times recently. On Wednesday we had been informed of some of those struggles and wanted to visit her, but had a very full schedule for that night. We were able to find about 20 minutes to stop by and visit her. When we went in, she told us what was happening and her concerns with tears in her eyes. We asked if we could kneel with her and pray. She offered the prayer and it was one of the most heartfelt, sincere prayers I have ever heard. The Spirit filled the room. It was so humbling to hear her speaking openly with her Heavenly Father and asking for His help and guidance. After she finished, I asked if I could also pray for her and her family. So we prayed again. The Spirit and God's love for Mi and her family were so tangible. Those moments humble me and remind me that the missionaries of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are truly called by a prophet of God, through inspiration, to act as representatives of Christ, and are blessed with power and authority to fulfill that calling. I'm so excited for Danica to have her own experiences as one of Christ's representatives in the Dallas mission!

I love Mi and her family so much and all the incredible people here have all have become family to me!

We are teaching a members granddaughter, M. She was going to be baptized when her father was converted when she was a really young girl. But her parents were divorced and her mom didn't allow her to go to church after that, so she fell away from that path.

It has been a miracle how she has become more receptive to learning. We had a wonderful lesson with her on Thursday night about the Plan of Salvation! The Plan of Salvation is real!!! M and her grandmother and family have a great sense of humor. they make us laugh and laugh. The grandmother was converted several years ago, and every testimony meeting she goes up and sings a few lines of a gospel song, before testifying - singing: "Oh Jesus, Walk with me." continues with testimony: "Brothers and Sisters, that's all you need! Jesus. And I share this in his name.." I love her!

We have had a few great lessons with B and S this week where they have been able to openly share some of their concerns, and we have been able to help resolve those. The Spirit is so essential in missionary work! Without the Spirit, we truly could not teach!

Our appointments with M and D's family have been getting cancelled, due to a death in the family again. We dropped by on Saturday. There was no answer when we knocked on the door, but we heard the kids inside. Then we heard the garage door opened, and the car pulled up with M, D, and A inside. We waved and smiled, and then when they got out we noticed they looked very solemn and were all wearing black. They had just come back from a funeral. It struck me how aware of them Heavenly Father is. We often show up at people's houses right at the -what seems like the wrong time- but what is actually the time when people are in the greatest need of peace. It occurred to me that Heavenly Father often tries to provide that peace for people in those moments by leading the missionaries to their door. M was about to let us into the house, but we told her if it wasn't the best time we could come back. She politely agreed to have us come back another time. Later she texted us and sincerely thanked us for being there. She said the timing wasn't good, but that she really does appreciate us. That was so kind!

Another miracle: We got to our dinner appointment on Thursday, and Sister C (who was hosting us for dinner) was leaving to go down the street to pick up some pizzas (including a gluten-free one. The members here are so kind!!). So we decided to meet a few of her neighbors. We chose a house a few down from hers. We knocked, and a girl named A opened. We told her we had a special message about Christ and asked if we could share it with her. She said yes and opened the door. We were so surprised that honestly were at a loss of words for a second! Sister C was pulling back into her driveway with the pizzas, so we knew we didn't have too much time. But we were able to set up a return appointment, and we wrote down a video for her to watch online, which she did. Of all the doors, it is such a miracle that we knocked on hers and met her! Her actions and kindness reflected that she is Christian. I've noticed that our actions truly do reflect our Christianity more than the words "I'm Christian."

Pues, this email is getting far too long. But the gospel is true! I know that Christ's gospel has been restored in its complete and perfect form, and that that gospel is found in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I am so grateful for my Savior! I know that this church is His, and that He appeared to Joseph Smith, that He instructed Joseph Smith to find and translate the Book of Mormon, and that He instructed those who wrote the Book of Mormon. I know that He restored His priesthood authority to the earth, and that today we can be baptized by that authority in this church. We are blessed!

I hope yall have a great week! I love you!

-Sister Greenall