Let Your Light So Shine!

Hello family and friends!

This has been a pretty good week. We taught a total of 16 lessons! But
we really need to find new investigators who are ready to progress.
This gospel is so important and people don't understand how important
it is to read the scriptures, pray, and come to church. A few get
that. But those simple things are our protection from Satan and as we
do them we will be fortified when the winds of trial and temptation
come.

On Monday we had a good time with the other missionaries at the
Glendora Stake Center. Greece was about 30 some missionaries there. We
played a huge game of volleyball. The LaVerne Zone against the
Glendora Zone. We later taught a lesson to an investigator and a less
active. They both went well.

Tuesday was a good day. Lots of lessons, we taught 5 lessons. They all
went well, nothing to exciting to report. With one of our
investigators  we went though the baptism interview questions
and she is so excited to be baptized! But she has to work on a few
things first. She has such a strong testimony and sucks up the
knowledge of the gospel!

Wednesday we did service at the Pomona hospital and later we had
dinner with some of the ward missionaries . They are so
sweet! We ended up stopping by their friends house after and she let
us right in. She and her husband would have the missionaries over a
lot until their son passed away and then it made things hard. Their
son was a member. She was so sweet. They have a room full of musical
instrument. They have a baby grand and so Sister M played the
piano while we sang hymns - we being the lady and me. She knew a few
of them which was cool. She had a hymn book and one for the piano that
spirals out. She showed us around the house and she collects all sorts
of things. She collects tea sets and has a few sets of the really
nice, pretty blue tea sets from England. I love those sets! They are
so pretty! And guess what!? She ended up giving us a starter set, a
spoon, knife, and two plates and a tea cup! She's so sweet!! She said
she wants to be baptized in the Newport temple font and she
understands she can't but can do baptisms for the dead there. She
knows a lot and all her friends call her a catholic Mormon. Pretty
funny.

Thursday we had a combined district meeting...there are only two
districts in our zone so it was a zone meeting taught by the district
leaders...pretty much. It was the weirdest district meeting I've ever
been to. We then had the APs come and they had us download a new thing
onto our iPads so that president will get a notification every time we
try to go to a restricted place. We had to delete all our apps and
when you delete gospel library all the things you've downloaded are
deleted too...so I had finally downloaded all the videos I wanted and
now I have to download them again. Good thing it didn't take too long.
But we taught another one of our investigators  and she is so
excited to read from the Book of Mormon because she didn't know there
was another testament of Christ and finds it so intriguing! It's
awesome! We then did some service to help pack a moving truck for a
family that moved to Utah and then saw our recent convert  and
had a fun lesson with her. Dad and mom you remember the lesson where
you make one rip out of a piece of paper and get a cross? Well we did
that and taught about missionary work and gave her a Book of Mormon to
give out. She's so excited!

On Friday it was a long long day of weekly planning. And of everyone
canceling on us and not being home. It was a long day.

On Saturday we had a good day! We taught 4 lessons. They all went
well. It was a hot day! We had the lessons all spread apart so finding
people in between made for a long day. We got ice cream from the ice
cream truck so that was fun! But all our lessons went well. We taught
one of our investigators  about missionary work and did the
same thing about giving her a Book of Mormon. The next day at church
she asked if she could write in the Book of Mormon- her copy- we said
of course and she said oh good! Opened it up and showed us all the
notes she made in it studying form it the night before! It's awesome!

Sunday went well. We were so blessed. We needed 3 more member present
lessons to reach our goals for lessons if the week and we had a lesson
with one of our investigators  where he asked us to teach about
baptism. So we taught the gospel of Jesus Christ. Then we had a fun
dinner. The kids were so cute and so excited to have us over. Then we
went by another investigator we haven't seen in a while and she was
just about to leave so we went with two young women to the Jewish
investigators home and his family. We were supposed to meet a man from
another ward at their house who converted from Judaism. The family
told us to reschedule with him for next week. So we called and left
him a message and when we arrived he was there. But he had been
talking with the family for about an hour before we got there and then
he stayed after our lesson as well. But after that we had one hour
till curfew and needed one more member present lesson. So we called
another investigator and she answered and agreed to have us
come over. It was the best lesson we have ever had with her. She felt
the spirit so strong and began tearing up. She said she never tears up
but she is just so thankful that we love her and care about her. It
was sweet! She is so nice! It was such a tender mercy that we were
able to meet with her because her schedule is always so busy!

So that's my week! Some good lessons and awesome tender mercies. I
know that God loves each and every one of us and as we act in faith we
will be able to grow closer to Him. I love this gospel and being a
missionary. Do something this week where people can recognize that you
are a disciple of Christ. Matthew 5:13-16.

Love, Sister Riches