How Great Shall Be Your Joy!

Hello Family and Friends!

This week has been a pretty good one. Because we had a baptism yesterday for A. so we were able to see her about everyday! She has strengthened my testimony so much and she is a blessing in my life. She is so friendly and has such a drive and desire to learn and do what is right. It has been so cool as we have been teaching her to see how the Holy Ghost has been teaching her. I am so happy that the Lord has blessed me to be with her up until now to begin teaching her and watch as she progresses to baptism and to help her Endure to the End.

This experience has helped me to understand the scripture in D&C 18: 15-16 because as I have been dedicating each and every day to the Lord to bring "some soul" unto Him, I have helped Him bring A. and that is only one soul but the joy and happiness that our Heavenly Father and Savior and Brother Jesus Christ have now that she has come unto Him is so great! I am so blessed to be here and to have been a tool in the Lord's hand to help bring a soul unto Him. I am so thankful for being a missionary despite how hard it gets and how sometimes I get discouraged but as I turn outward and turn upward to the Savior, I am helped and blessed. It's amazing how little we have to do to be blessed but it's taking that step to take action that is why we are blessed. We are given to many blessings that there is no way we will ever be able to pay it back. Such great love and grace the Savior gives to us!

A.'s baptism of course was the highlight of this past week. We also were able to set a date with a new investigator for baptism. I am so excited for her. She's 11 and reminds me so much of S.!! 

Last Monday we were finally able to decorate our Christmas Tree and make pumpkin bars and cookies! I am trying more and more mexican food while I am here and I love it! Pozolle is a big tradition for the Holiday's as is Tamales! Pozolle is pretty good, its a mexican soup with hominy an chicken or pork. I don't care for hominy too much but other than that it was really good! I also have munido (?) in the fridge from a member to try...it's cow intestine. I'm excited! I also want to try Bulute...a duck egg with the duck embryo and you can see it forming...kinda gross but I've heard it's actually pretty good...Go look up pictures!

For Christmas I skyped home!!! Second highlight of the week! It was so nice to see Mom, Dad, and S.! Even though I've seen them two months almost three months ago S. has changed so much! It's fun to read her emails and read how her testimony is growing so much!! After we made sugar cookies with the elders to give to investigators and families we are working with. It was fun. We had about three dinners and since Christmas Ever I have not felt hungry at all!!!!! We have so many sweets!!!! Everyone decided to give us cookies and chocolates! It covers my bottom shelf in my kitchen cupboard..there are pictures.

So A.'s baptism was amazing! She asked me to give the talk on the Holy Ghost and it was very sweet! I was so worried about bawling through the whole thing but I was blessed that I only teared up a little! I didn't want to be a distraction. But she was so happy and excited and now after being baptized she is so excited and happy! She couldn't describe how she felt but it was awesome and she was just so happy! 

Today we hiked to the A again at 5:30am!!! It was a good hike, I'm not as sore as I was last time...yet...

I am so thankful to be a tool in the Lord's hand to help Him in His work!! I love you all and hope you had a good Christmas and remembered the Savior and all He has done for us! Thank you for all the love and support and letters and emails everyone has sent! I really appreciate it!! Have a Happy New Year! You all are always in my prayers!

Love, Sister Celeste Riches