Dear friends and family,
I do not know where to begin this letter. So many things have happened this week that I will just begin typing and hope that it all makes sense and comes out correctly. First, know that the veil is very thin. I have felt angels around me this week. The Holy Ghost can dwell with people that want to become like Christ and is especially strong when a missionary is obedient. Heavenly Father has been aligning the stars in heaven in ways that I simply cannot comprehend and He has been aligning them since before I was even born. All of the miracles that I see are part of His perfect plan and I am just an instrument in His hands; one that is worthy and willing.
I feel impressed to share several experiences from this week and hope that they will touch your hearts and strengthen your faith like they have for me.
Satan is as real as Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ are. He is around missionaries and anyone that is trying to do good. He will stop at nothing to take you out at the knees. However, no unhallowed hand can stop the work from progressing. We can conquer the devil, and we will do so, with a fight. This week I have been attacked by Satan in all the ways he knows how. I feel like I need to express that I am seeing miracle after miracle, but it is not just a "walk in the park". Before I left, Derek told me to enjoy my vacation. I am thriving in Nauvoo, but there are most certainly trials, just like in any other mission and in anyone else's life. Last week, I started having problems with my vision because of allergies. I grew up on a farm, around horses and hay, and never had problems with allergies. My vision was so bad that I could barely read my scriptures because of the film across my contacts. I remembered that a Priesthood blessing before I left gave me the impression that I would never be so sick that the work would be hindered, so I prayed hard. "Heavenly Father, I really feel like I cannot be completely effective with this problem. Please heal me. I have faith in the Priesthood and that revelation." I prayed for a solid hour that night and woke up in the morning -- perfect vision.
Sister Coyne, my companion, has been struggling-a lot. She is working in the call center and feels inadequate because she isn't organized and she hates talking on the phone. She had a rough time in Montana and has been suffering since. I came out of the MTC, fired up, ready to work my heart to death, full of faith, and excited to see what Heavenly Father had in store. We set our weekly goals, including numbers of tours we would take, referrals received, etc. For the first week, which we expected to be very slow, Sister Coyne convinced me to expect the number of 8 tours to be given during the week. She was here last summer. Between the both of us. I had no idea what to expect, so I agreed, since it didn't appear that many people were around in Nauvoo. However, I went and discussed it with Heavenly Father and I felt like I should work for a lot more than eight. I set my own personal goal at TWENTY. Well, at the end of the week, I went back and evaluated everything. We took TWENTY EIGHT tours. I took 24 of those.
President Gilliland told me to build her faith and I am doing everything within my power to do so. I have a picture of Christ in Gethsemane on my wall above my bed, and I pour my heart out in pleas of faith to let me know how to help my companion. She does so many good things for me and she has had good experiences, but she is struggling. I rely heavily on the Lord to allow me to reach all that He expects of me.
President Gilliland told me to build her faith and I am doing everything within my power to do so. I have a picture of Christ in Gethsemane on my wall above my bed, and I pour my heart out in pleas of faith to let me know how to help my companion. She does so many good things for me and she has had good experiences, but she is struggling. I rely heavily on the Lord to allow me to reach all that He expects of me.
Earlier in the week, both Sister Coyne and I went down with colds. No one else in the house of sisters got sick at all and I felt like we needed to get Priesthood blessings. I have a favorite senior elder already and he is a light to my testimony. He served as a mission president in Peru and his testimony shines brightly. In the blessing, he told me many things that I know came straight from Heavenly Father. He said I need to bear testimony of the Atonement constantly. So with all of me that I am and am capable of becoming, I will teach the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Other things he said caused me to enter serious reflection with Heavenly Father. That night I did not sleep. I had received two letters earlier that day. One was from an elder from my MTC district, servng in Salt Lake. He said that his president told them to invite people at their doors to be baptized, if they say no, they are not prepared yet. Another friend's letter from Portugal said that when his president came in, they were baptizing 300 people a year. After the president started changing things, they were baptizing 49 people each WEEK. That adds up to about 1200 people per year. INCREDIBLE. Not just the numbers, but the increase of people accepting baptisms. These things made my heart begin to listen to the Spirit. I remember a specific individual asking me after I received my mission call, "Are you REALLY excited to serve in Nauvoo? It's not a REAL mission and you won't even see baptisms." After lying awake in bed all night, I had a new vision. "If missionaries in Salt Lake City UTAH are inviting people to be baptized from the doorstep, why can't I invite them in a dedicated building?"
President Gilliland gave me a blessing on Sunday because I had a NEW illness, after the first one being healed immediately upon the ending of the blessing. He suggested it, and in the blessing, he said, "The Lord is pleased with the desires of your heart, and because of the preparation you have made for this mission throughout your entire life, you will be able to claim the blessings that you desire." Well, based on the revelation I received, the desires of my heart, and the work I am willing to put forth in faith, EXPECT MIRACLES.
This week was packed full of miracles in people that came to the Visitor's Center. Non-members just "WANDER" in. I pray frequently throughout the day that someone else will come in, and they come. A couple from Norway came in. I taught them about the Book of Mormon and temples-how they can be sealed for time and eternity. We went for a walk in the Women's Garden and they asked questions as quickly as I could answer. They said that two elders lived across from them in Norway, but they never knew who they were until they recognized my name tag to be the same as theie. They took a pass-along card and they both thanked me. They will find the elders when they get back to Norway in a few weeks and this precious couple will finally know what those two elders have been doing all that time!
A man, Tom, came in, looking for Joseph Smith's house location. I felt prompted to ask him more questions and discovered that he had been studying Joseph Smith's life for quite some time and wanted the story to come to life. He wanted to know more about the Priesthood and know what exactly it was. I explained and he asked if he could have it someday. We talked a little more and I asked him what his favorite miracle was in the Bible. He responded, "When Christ raised the man from the dead. Can something like that still happen today?" I got a rush of the Spirit and said, "Yes." I told him the story that my own father had in being part of saving a baby that had no heart rate or pulse (Brennan Bates). The Priesthood is the power of God and it exists on the earth today. Worthy men hold it and are able to do the work that Christ would do. After talking for a few more minutes, he wanted to know about temples. He wanted to know what he had to do to be a member and HE asked ME, "When is your church held tomomorrow? I want to come."
Two days ago, a mother and three daughters walked in. I found out that the mom and the youngest daughter had just moved to Nauvoo recently. The other two daughters were visiting from California. We got talking and I had them watch the movie, "Moments that Matter Most". The mom responded, "WOW, that makes you think about what is most important." I felt the Spirit prompt me and I took them over to a display of the temple. They were excited because they thought the building on the hill was sooo beautiful and wanted to know more about it. I just blurted out, "Evelyn, you can be with your daughters forever." Her eyes locked in mine and she started to tear up. "What did you say?" I will keep you all posted on Evelyn and her family, but the moment they walked in the front doors, I felt something. It was like I had known them before. I felt the Spirit. They are an answer to my prayers, because I've been praying for a family to see them be baptized. I know there's progress to be made, but I know what I felt. I just don't know the timing.
A young guy named Shaun is a returned missionary and very strong willed. He comes into the Visitor's Center with a somewhat condescending attitude towards Visitor's Center sisters. Three of us took him on a tour and as we went, I could feel the Spirit prompting me to dig a little deeper under his rough surface. He was a convert to the church and his parents were not members. He said that his parents gave him permission to do their temple work after they die. I felt prompted to ask and did so. "Why will your parents let you do their work once they die, but not accept the gospel now?" He spat back at me, "You do not know what you are doing. Missionaries don't ask questions like that. You should NEVER ask someone that question, but I guess it's ok because I'm an RM." I was a little taken back...obviously, so I stepped out mentally to evaluate.
Had I not listened to the Spirit correctly? I felt confident that the Spirit prompted it. As the tour progressed the other sisters began to be irritated with him. As we got to the Christus, the Spirit took over and I couldn't believe what I was saying. "Shaun, Heavenly Father knows that you prayed for your parents every single day of your mission. He knows that it broke your heart to baptize families when your own family will not yet accept the gospel. He hears your prayers and is grateful for your dedicated service as a missionary. Because of that service, He will answer your prayers when the time is right." He had tears dripping down his face and my heart was pounding. "Thank you, Sister Ripplinger. Heavenly Father just spoke through you and told me what I needed to hear." I felt like there was something else to say. "Keep working on becoming the kind of person you want to marry. Keep in mind what qualities you want, and become worthy of that woman. When you find her, you will know it is right and things will work out as you have been praying for." He looked at me with HUGE eyes. I wanted to look at MYSELF with huge eyes!!!!! What the heck had I just said?! He told us that his girlfriend had just broken up with him three days before and he was heart broken over it. She told him that he didn't have the right qualities for her and it just wouldn't work out. Well- THAT one was DEFINITELY inspired. Heavenly Father just knows us. He knows our hearts and what hurts us. He is merciful.
Had I not listened to the Spirit correctly? I felt confident that the Spirit prompted it. As the tour progressed the other sisters began to be irritated with him. As we got to the Christus, the Spirit took over and I couldn't believe what I was saying. "Shaun, Heavenly Father knows that you prayed for your parents every single day of your mission. He knows that it broke your heart to baptize families when your own family will not yet accept the gospel. He hears your prayers and is grateful for your dedicated service as a missionary. Because of that service, He will answer your prayers when the time is right." He had tears dripping down his face and my heart was pounding. "Thank you, Sister Ripplinger. Heavenly Father just spoke through you and told me what I needed to hear." I felt like there was something else to say. "Keep working on becoming the kind of person you want to marry. Keep in mind what qualities you want, and become worthy of that woman. When you find her, you will know it is right and things will work out as you have been praying for." He looked at me with HUGE eyes. I wanted to look at MYSELF with huge eyes!!!!! What the heck had I just said?! He told us that his girlfriend had just broken up with him three days before and he was heart broken over it. She told him that he didn't have the right qualities for her and it just wouldn't work out. Well- THAT one was DEFINITELY inspired. Heavenly Father just knows us. He knows our hearts and what hurts us. He is merciful.
Heavenly Father told us this life would be a test and it will be worth it. Every trial that we face, every challenge- will be drowned out with light as we become like the Savior and eventually return to our Father's presence. This mission is so special to me. I literally have waited and prepared my entire life. I had big expectations and already, in two weeks time, my expectations have far been exceeded. I can only imagine how precious and sacred the Celestial Kingdom will be. Keep fighting as part of God's army on the earth! The Second Coming is near and there is much work to be done! Heavenly Father has already given you everything that you need to be successful-and that everything is Jesus Christ. I know that with all of my heart. Let the Atonement consume your soul and make you whole. You will witness and be part of miracles. Gaining your own testimony is the first miracle that must happen.
I love you all. Sacrifice brings forth the blessings of heaven.
Love,
Sister Heather Ripplinger
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