I can't believe that it is Monday already. On the 13th I have officially been out 1 month! Pretty exciting! I'm looking less green and more brown I guess (but I'm actually looking more pale). With that pale comment my district leader told me that I am the palest brown person he has every seen I don't know if that is a compliment or not...Also I have been getting soaked like everyday...

Food

 This week I had banana squash for the first time, it was really good. And I have peaches and corn coming out of my ears! (haha ears of corn)

The Work

This week was a long week because all of our investigators cancelled on us! Lame. It was okay though we went and saw a lot of less actives. What was great about seeing and teaching these less actives is that they all have fellow shippers and they all have the potential have getting to the temple. And that is our goal here with the less actives getting them to the temple. Especially yesterday when we were teaching lessons I just felt like we were everywhere we needed to be at the right time, and that that was where the Lord wanted us to be.

Also this week we have met with a lot of members and these members are really getting excited to do missionary work. We go to their house they tell who they know has been on their mind whether they are less active or non members and then we figure out a plan on how we can introduce the gospel to those whom the spirit has brought to their minds. We have seen the fruits of doing this yet, but it is coming a long and I may not get a baptism while i'm in this area, but my companion I may pave the way so that members are excited about missionary work and inviting everyone to have salvation!

The Message

The message and the work kind of go hand in hand this week because I have learned so much from the scriptures this week and I have been able to share it with members. This week I started the book of Alma. And Alma was going to the city of Ammonihah to teach the people there and the people were really mean to him as always and as he was leaving the city the spirit told him to go back and enter into the city another way.(Alma 8) ANOTHER WAY! I am in Utah and most of the people here have been approach like 100 times and every single time it has been the same way. Every member tells us that they have sent the missionaries over their neighbors, well that hasn't worked. So lets try a different way. When Alma went the other way the Lord sent Amulek to be his companion. And they were able to teach the people in many cities. I have learned that the people whom the Lord is preparing to be taught the gospel in these last days are not just going to open their doors. We are going to have to do things differently we are going to have to rely on the Lord for help. We need to pray that he will give us opportunities to share the gospel and when these opportunities come we will have the courage to share the gospel. I also think that we need to try our hardest to create these opportunities and have faith that the Lord will soften their hearts when we speak about it. I have testimony of this, this week we have been trying to teach a non member he is very nice and i'm surprised that he is not a member of the church. We gave service to him and we are friends with him, but when we went to share a message with him, he wasn't receptive and that was because we didn't go in with a prayer and we did what we have always done knocking on his door. It doesn't work. We didn't go another way...

I have learned so much from the scriptures by reading them everyday and not having any distractions.The scriptures have given me instruction on what I need to do. It's easier because I am a missionary and their isn't anything really to distract me, but there is so much in there that we don't understand and we won't understand it unless we continue to feast on the words of Christ. The scriptures has brought me so much closer to my Savior and to the knowledge of His atonement. 

I love you all very much! Thank you for your prayers, I need all the prayers I can get!

Sister Swain