Ojai!

Family!

What a week it has been! I already love it here in Ojai. This area has incredible potential and the people that we have met are so great.. I already love them. They are pretty wacky. Ha, It's a hippie town.. a lot of "free sprits", but people are so friendly and kind! It's beautiful here.. so different from any where I've been. I will send pictures soon!

We've been spending this past week visiting the ward members, with an emphasis on ward council, since we are both new to the area! Thankfully the Hermana's left a lot of organized notes and really have this area progressing. Sister Scoresby and I really want to focus on strengthening this ward, especially the youth here. Both our ward mission leader and young women's president told us that the youth program is struggling. We are making an effort to help out with activities, offering to teach, and taking the young women out to our lessons. The bishop is great and has a wonderful vision for this ward. We're focusing on working with him in carrying out the ward mission plan and following up with the members frequently! We had the wonderful opportunity to speak in sacrament meeting yesterday. I felt impressed to speak about exercising faith in Jesus Christ and how that can help us experience conversion…This really helped us introduce ourselves to the ward quicker and build trust. We want to focus on leaving the area stronger than when we found it. Our theme is a triangle with 3 points: Heavenly Father at the top, us, and the members.. we really cannot do this work without the members!! There is a lot of less-active work and members have been giving us great service opportunities! We have been so busy and have a lot of appointments for this upcoming week.

Sister Scoresby is a wonderful missionary.. I'm so blessed to be serving with her! Despite the stress that comes with taking on a new area together, we've seen so many miracles already and I have learned so much from her! We are focusing on

being more unified in all that we do.. I have a sense of urgency when it comes to the work.. I get a little excited sometimes haha. I know that I need to find that balance and develop patience too! I really want to focus on being a charitable companion this transfer.. I know that this will be so important and determine our success! Sister Scoresby is from a little country town in Ohio.. She lived in an Amish community, you don't hear that every day?! We come from very different backgrounds. It's amazing how two people can be so different, but we both have that same purpose.

One miracle was meeting with our progressing investigator, Shirley! Shirley is married to brother Mitchell. Brother Mitchell was dis-fellowshipped, but has come back and is now just waiting to get an okay from church HQ to  receive the priesthood  again, so he can baptize his wife. They are such a sweet couple.. I love them already. We were a little nervous about our first lesson with them because Shirley is deaf. We weren't sure how to go about it and we wanted to keep it simple, so that she could understand. Sister Longstaff in our ward comes to each of the lessons and signs. The lesson was so powerful and completely by the spirit.. I loved this lesson. It just shows that the spirit works the same way and any one can feel it. Shirley is so special to us already. I guess I'll be learning some sign language this transfer :)

Heavenly Father knew I needed to stretch. I am learning and growing in so many ways.. I've especially learned in this past week, that I absolutely cannot do this work without him. I'm so grateful that he is so patient with me and loves me, regardless of my weaknesses. I read a vs. in Jacob 4:7 that brought me so much comfort.. "The Lord God showeth us our weakness that we may know that it is by his grace, and his great condescensions unto the children of men, that we have power to do these things. " I know that as I turn to him and my savior quickly and trust in them, he will give us power and we will see miracles.

I also learned it's important to laugh things off when they don't go so smoothly.. There is so much joy to be found in this work!! I LOVE being a missionary!

Thanks for your prayers! I love you all!

Sister James
3-16-2015