I love Ojai!

Family!!

This past week was amazing... I love Ojai, I love the people and the experiences I am having! We are really focusing on the youth in our ward and took more of them out with us this week... these are our future missionaries and they have such a powerful influence on those we teach.  We had the opportunity to speak in sacrament meeting as well!  A returned missionary from the Ojai ward gave his homecoming talk, so the whole meeting centered on missionary work! We had four investigators come, which was such a blessing! Lisa and Allie, Louise, and Shirley all came and a less-active member that we have been working with also came.

Our investigator Lisa is so prepared... You have all heard the term "Golden investigator"… she is everything beyond that haha. She is preparing to be baptized on June 13th. She is living the word of wisdom completely, reading the Book of Mormon diligently (she is now in 2 Nephi 6), We gave her a pearl of great price and doctrine and covenants on Thursday and she's already almost done with the pearl of great price. We've been meeting with her almost every day.. it has been such a miracle. She's such an example to me! She gave us a call on Saturday to let us know that Allie is feeling that she is not quite ready for baptism on the 13th, but that Lisa still wants to continue with hers and lead by example. We felt the same way and so we are looking forward to adjusting our teaching to help Allie understand and really focusing on helping her have spiritual experiences to prepare her for baptism soon. We had a Relief society/ YW activity this past week, so it was perfect! It was pretty funny because Janice showed up and it turns out that Janice and Lisa are really good friends! And they both know a lot of the members (this is a small valley…everyone knows everyone).

We happened to do service for Janice this past week and Lisa and Allie actually came with us and helped.. they are so wonderful! Janice really loves to learn, but expressed to us this past week that she's hesitant about the commitment. She even has developed a testimony of the 1st vision and of the prophet Joseph Smith.. but wants to move slooow,  which is okay because this work is about the people and what they need, not about what the missionary wants. We'll continue to work with her, serve her, and help her recognize the spirit.

We haven't been able to meet with Viviana, but we met with her mom, Ellie.. I have mentioned her before. We hadn't planned on visiting Ellie that day and the spirit prompted us to visit. I'm so grateful that we followed the spirit because it was exactly what she needed. She opened up and got very emotional.. she told us that she has never felt peace in her life. Never.. which I thought was heart-breaking. She's always helping everyone else in her family, that she's never been able to find who she is. She told us that just before we showed up three weeks ago, she had been praying to find that peace. She knows that we didn't come by coincidence and that she will find the peace she is seeking in the restored gospel.

I'm so grateful for the precious gift of The Holy Ghost and for the promise that "He WILL show you all things what ye should do." Each individual we meet is so different, they have different desires... and sincere questions of the soul. (especially here in Ojai.. People are deep!) If I rely on my own wisdom, I cannot understand what they need.. HE knows what they need. I'm so grateful for the spirit, leading me and guiding me in this work and giving me the words to say.

There is power in daily repentance and daily scripture study.. it's changing me every day! The adversary is a very real being.. Thankfully, our Heavenly Father has provided us with tools to fill our lives with the savior's teachings to be able to withstand temptation. Live every day in a manner that shows your value for the atonement of our savior and put the atonement to work. I'm learning that I can't convince or persuade any one to come unto Christ... I can't convince anyone that the gospel has been restored. All I can do is invite, testify, and love people into the gospel. We all must have personal experiences with the atonement and we must all ask, seek, and knock for ourselves. We have the ability to receive personal revelation and answers... We have the perfect example - our savior Jesus Christ. The praise of the world didn't mean anything to him.. If we follow the example of Christ in seeking to please our Heavenly Father, we will find lasting happiness... the gospel is true.

Love,
Sister James
5-25-15

Lisa giving up her coffee

 

Our perfect investigator Lisa!
 

 

We're so white!