Chapter 63: A Tornado and a Testimony

Hi y'all! This has been a wild week! And it's about to be another wild one! 

Monday we had a Sisters pday! We went to the Hopeland Gardens in Aiken! So so so pretty! Some of the big bushes were starting to bloom, and it's winter! 

We were on tornado watch twice this week! There was a big ol storm on Tuesday and again on Friday,(I think. I honestly don't remember haha). It was some intense raining, wind, and thunder. We still went out. The coastal zones had to stay inside, and halfway through the day a zone next to us had to stay in. Not Aiken. We built different! There was a tornado touch down in the Barnwell Elders area. They're all safe though. Thank the Lord. That was definitely one of the worst storms I've driven in. 

Tuesday we were out in Aiken for half the day. The Zone Leaders and us switched dcm's for the week. It was fun getting to go to the other districts meeting! We got to be there with the Sisters! Love them. 

On Friday Sister Jolley and I got dinner at this nummy pizza place right next to our church building called Knead Pizza. Delish!! It was also storming like crazy. We spent half our dinner hour at the church, and before we left, Sister Jolley and I decided to go out and run in the rain! It was so much fun!! We raced and I ended up slipping. Full on cartoon style, feet out from under me and I slid hahaha. Then we jumped in some puddles and splashed each other. Literally so much joy right there. I was super soaked haha and now have a big bruise on my elbow from falling. Totally worth it though! Highly recommend going out in the rain and just messing around.

We went to the family we have on dates house every day this week. Taught lessons and helped them prepare for their baptisms this weekend. The adversary has been working so hard on them y'all. But I told Sister Jolley I will fight tooth and nail for this family. I love them with my whole heart! We set up a Priesthood blessing for them on Sunday. It was one of the most Spiritually powerful and sacred experiences I've had on my mission. It was definitely what they needed. 

We also had a stake service day on Saturday. Us and the Elders went to a children's shelter with a handful of members and did some raking. We raked a lot of leaves and pine needles. Like A LOT. Most of them were mushy and wet. It was also super cold. But we had a great time, I love getting to do service!

There was like one really hard day Sister Jolley and I had. We had a lesson with someone, and it was just so negative and there was not a good spirit in their home. We came out of it feeling super trashy. We knew we weren't going to be able to do much feeling this way. We went to the church so we could help ourselves to feel the Spirit again. Sister Jolley played piano in the chapel and I sat in there listening and reading the Book of Mormon. 

I love the Book of Mormon so much. It honestly helps me solve all my problems, haha. It seemed kinda strange to me at first that simply reading a book could do that. But first things first, the Book of Mormon is not just a book. It's a testimony. Actually lots of testimonies. All about Jesus Christ and His Gospel. And even if the answer or solution I'm needing in that moment isn't said through the words on the page, it'll come through thoughts or feelings. And that is so cool! Simply just putting yourself in the scriptures, even if your mind is wandering while you read, that's okay! Maybe that's what you need in that moment. But seriously, on the days where missionary life is hektic and I miss out on reading my scriptures in the morning, I can definitely tell. So go read your Book of Mormon. Make it a habit to open it up every day. You'll start to see a change in your day. You'll feel the change on the inside. 

Also, please pray for our friends getting baptized this Saturday! Addy, Stephen, Brayton, and Keatyn! 🙏🙏🙏🙏

Stay safe, keep smiling, KTF, (Keep The Faith)

God loves you, Jesus loves you, and I love you

-Sister Ray