Subject: Life, Encourage, Inspire, and Bless
My dear friends and family,
The thunder is rumbling, the wind is blowing, and Nauvoo is radiating the Spirit as much as ever before. I LOVE NAUVOO!!!!! We received about 40 more new couples this week and the 40+ performing missionaries will be coming in next week. Nauvoo is a tiny, little place, just packed full of representatives of the Lord. I'm so excited for all of the miracles that can happen in such a sacred place.
Joseph Smith translated the Book of Mormon in a VERY short period of time, which is absolutely miraculous. He started on approximately April 7th and completed it on July 1st. I had already set a goal to read the Book of Mormon with my family at that pace (85ish days), but when I discovered that he started it in April, I decided that I wanted to read it during the same time period at the same pace. So as I am reading it, I am marking references to angels ministering to people and when prayers are sent to heaven. It is always incredible to me that every time we read the Book of Mormon, something new stands out and we learn what we need at that time. During the last month, I have had a lot of thoughts about angels visiting their family members and it is amazing what I'm learning from the Book of Mormon through the Spirit. I would invite everyone to read the Book of Mormon in 85 days because it will strengthen your testimony of the Book of Mormon, as well as of the Prophet Joseph. Mark references to a specific topic that you feel inspires, such as the doctrine of Christ (faith, repentance, baptism, the Holy Ghost, enduring to the end, etc), or when prophesies were fulfilled, when prayers were answered, references to charity, faith, obedience, or whichever. Your testimony will be strengthened significantly and the Spirit will teach you new things that you need to help you come closer to Christ. It will also strengthen you in your capacity as disciples of Christ. "Your ability to teach with power from the scriptures comes in large measure from the time you personally spend studying them." Preach My Gospel pg 180
We have people in Nauvoo from all over the world already. I've talk with them from New Zealand, Japan, and Australia. There are people from all over the United States coming and it is so incredible to see God's children. Something that I absolutely love to think about is that EVERYONE we see walking around the store, on the streets, that we take on tours, that we interact with...are all children of God, they are our brothers and sisters. We are all a part of God's family! There is so much power in that. It allows me to be completely comfortable talking to anyone that I see and to just look forward to learning what their story is and being directed by the Spirit to know what to say. I LOVE IT!!!!!!
This week, there have been a lot of storms and a whole lot of rain. There have been some flooding problems and we had the opportunity to help out. We all went out to fill sand bags and everyone really enjoyed it. I'm grateful to be serving with so many sisters that love work and have a good attitude about working in the cold and shoveling sand. They were all singing hymns as we worked and they are awesome. I love them! One morning at about 6:15, an extremely loud crack of thunder shook our whole house. Most of us were in a deep sleep, and poor Sister Dransfield was having a dream about tornadoes. She woke up when the house shook and frantically ran to the window and shouted, "SISTERS!!!! A TORNADO!!!!!!" I was half asleep and looked over at her. Everyone started laughing when she explained that she was having a bad dream and the thunder made it seem so real. The thunder storms here are INCREDIBLE. I LOVE to hear the thunder and watch the bright strikes of lightening in the sky. It is so beautiful and makes me feel a little bit of the power that our Heavenly Father has.
A lot of my thoughts this week were focused on the sisters I serve with. I love them. I've been striving to develop a vision of what this summer will do for the rest of our eternities and what I am to learn from them. It is an absolute blessing to serve among so many powerful missionaries, including those senior missionaries. They inspire me and I treasure the experiences I have with them. I have been studying President Eyring's talk "Help Them Aim High" and I've been pondering and praying to know each of the strengths of the missionaries here. It is so neat to see the Spirit teach me and recognize how precious they really are. My trainer, Sister Coyne, got married yesterday in the Nauvoo Temple!!!!!! We were able to attend her wedding reception last night and it was sooooo much fun!!!! She looked beautiful and was so happy. It was fun to be there and to spend time with the missionaries. It kind of made me flash forward to how we will all be friends for the rest of eternity and will be attending each other's wedding receptions and other big events, that we'll help each other, and have memories that will continue through our lives. Haha. I LOVE IT!!!!!! Only in Nauvoo do you get to attend events like for your previous companions... =)
A lot of the experiences I've had this week, I can't really share, but I am so grateful for everything that's been happening. I know without a doubt that the Lord hears the prayers of His children and He answers them. I have had so many of my own prayers answered throughout my life and I love to see when others have those same faith building experiences. We are all improving and progressing, we are all on the path that leads us back to our Heavenly Father. It is our responsibility to help one another along the way and to seek opportunities to lift, encourage, inspire, and bless others. I am so grateful for the opportunity to serve as a missionary. I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY!!!!!! But I'm excited for all that lies ahead in the rest of my life because I do not intend to stop sharing the gospel when I give up my name tag. The Lord wouldn't put so much effort into helping me along, if He didn't intend for me to keep using what I've learned. We have the knowledge of the truth and the blessings of eternity and we need to share them with others!!!!! Jesus Christ is the Savior and Redeemer of the world. He will help us overcome our weaknesses and He will never give up hope. We just have to keep trying. As Elder Holland so well stated in Conference that God knows we are imperfect and He's still willing to work with us. All God has ever had to work with is imperfect people. We just lean on the Lord and let Christ take His role in our lives as our Savior. I am so grateful for the Atonement and for Heavenly Father's plan for all of us. This is God's kingdom on the EARTH!!!!!!!!
Love,
Sister Heather Ripplinger
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