Hermana Gardner: 12/13/23

 ¡Chao OPM! 🥺🫶🏻

This is it! After 18 months, my time serving the Lord in Portland Oregon is officially coming to an end.

I have learned SO much from my time here. So much about my Savior, His restored gospel, and so much about myself as His disciple and sister. 

I have learned that Jesus Christ does nothing for himself. He is always looking to serve, bless, heal, and lift others. He will always have compassion and mercy on us if we come to Him. He sees us not only for who we are, but for who we are becoming. He changes hearts. He is the Savior of the world, the Only Begotten of the Father. I know that He lives! He is real. I love Him so much and have seen Him work miracles in the lives of the people here in Portland. 

Some highlights from this week were seeing the change He brought to Sonia and Jose!

Midweek, we got a random text from Jose and he just told us how he has felt such a change since meeting with us and coming to church! He said he trusts God and has faith in Him now. We invited him to be baptized over text 🤭 and there was still something holding him back. The next day on exchanges, we shared the message of the restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ. The NEXT day Sister Esplin and I followed up about his prayer and he had recieved an answer! He knew Joseph Smith was a prophet. We then extended him an invitation to be baptized over the phone and he accepted it! I am so excited for Jose! The change I have seen in His countenance is night to day. He is so happy, so light and so free. That only comes through Jesus Christ 💙😇🙏

Sonia is our friend who has been LOVING the gospel from day one, but keeps coming to us with doubts she has about the Book of Mormon, Joseph Smith, things like that. After a lesson with a member who helped her work through her doubts, we came back the next week. As we started teaching her, out of nowhere, she said "sisters I want to be baptized!" 🥹🥹🥹 we were overjoyed!! She then went on explaining how she came to that decision and was starting to get emotional. She said she has felt so much PEACE and JOY since learning and living the gospel. She accepted a date for the end of this month and is still trying to find a job where she can have work off on Sunday!

Please pray for Sonia and Jose!!! 🙏🙏🙏

I want to end with an invitation, of course. I invite you all to start today to see yourself and others as God does. That perspective changes everything. As you pray for His vision, I promise that He will change you. With that vision, you will more fully be able to help yourself, and others Come to Christ. 

As Alma did you can pray 

"O Lord, wilt thou grant unto us that we may have success in bringing them again unto thee in Christ.

 Behold, O Lord, their souls are precious, and many of them are our brethren; therefore, give unto us, O Lord, power and wisdom that we may bring these, our brethren, again unto thee".

I love you all! Thank you for your support, your christlike examples and your prayers. 🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷

My homecoming will be this Sunday Dec. 17th @ 10:30am, here is the address!

1785 E 400 S, Springville, UT 84663