Change

This has definitely been a week full of excitement and change! Ashley got baptized this week!! I am so grateful for the opportunity that I have had to teach her and her family and to help them grow in the gospel of Jesus Christ. I know that they are becoming closer and happier as a family because of their choices to follow God's commandments. We also taught someone else this week about the Restoration of the gospel and the Book of Mormon. It is amazing to see her entire countenance change as she learns more about the truth of Christ's church and how to follow Him. She has so much more hope and joy, and I know it is a result of feeling the Holy Spirit. The love of God truly changes people, and it is such a privilege to be able to see that.

One of the biggest changes this week is that I, along with 2 other missionaries in my district, will be getting transferred tomorrow! I am excited to find out where I will be going now, and to be able to meet and serve among the people there. I know that God has a plan for me and that I am needed somewhere else now. It is such a blessing to be able to serve as an instrument in God's hands and to be able to do His will. I know that He will not lead me astray, and that wherever I need to be is where I will go. It was definitely a hard couple of days, saying goodbye to people whom I have grown to know and love so much for the past 6 1/2 months. I have been able to see so many miracles occur here in Jacksonville, and I am forever grateful for all the love that I have felt here. I know that Heavenly Father blesses us with talents, abilities, and skills to be able to serve others and help them. While these gifts do bless us as well, they are most effectively used when in the service of others, which in turn is in the service of God (Mosiah 2:17, Book of Mormon). As we serve others and strive to be less selfish, we can become the kind of person that Heavenly Father needs us to be. We can overcome our weaknesses little by little and fulfill our potential as children of God. What will you do this week to serve someone else? :)

I love you all and pray for you often!

Love,

Sister Dieter

The Senior Missionary Couples and I

Definitely in the South!

Bacon-wrapped steak that a member made for us! (aka heart attack in bite-size form :) )

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Oi, tudo bem?

I hope everyone has had a great week. This week was full of lots of service opportunities, which was great! We were able to help a few people in their yard as well as cleaning the church. I love being able to do service for people and play a small part in helping to ease a burden. We had a couple of funny moments this week. At dinner with some members, their 10 year old daughter was telling us all about her upcoming choir concert. She was so excited that she decided to give us a mini concert right there at the dinner table! It was pretty cute and funny. Also, we asked a member and her 8 year old son if they knew anyone that we should stop by and might be in need of uplifting. The boy said, "Hold on a minute!" and then ran over to the window to see who he could find :) He then told us about his neighbor who could "use a long teach" about Christ. We also got some left over Girl Scout cookies from a member, which was much appreciated!

We had stake conference this weekend, which was great! (Congregations are called "wards" and a "stake" is a group of wards put together, so stake conference is basically a regional conference of members of the church). It was so inspiring and the Spirit was very strong! I loved the messages about sharing our knowledge with others and how we can be good examples to those around us simply by living the things that we believe. It is so important to not only believe in Jesus Christ and have faith in Him, but to ACT on that faith and show it by becoming a better person. As we strive to follow His commandments, we are purified and become more and more Christlike. Others will see the influence that He has in our lives and desire to have that for themselves. I know that as we pray for help, Heavenly Father will guide us to those people whom we can touch and to experiences where we can learn how to be like Him. I'm grateful for the knowledge that can be found in prayer and scripture study. I know that as we exercise our faith in Christ, He can help us to change and lead by example.

Com amor, 
Sister Dieter

Girl Scout Cookies!

Southern Comfort Food, Miracles, and Sick Days

Such an interesting week! We had a dinner at this place called Smithfield's with Sister Henderson. Goodness, such Southern food! Fried chicken, hush puppies, and Brunswick stew! Yum! Also, we had zone meeting in Wilmington and we went on exchanges with some other sisters in our zone. I went to Hampstead, which is a cute beach town on the coast. It was a great day and we were able to teach some wonderful people!
It rained a lot at the beginning of the week, which made it a little harder to talk with people. But we still had a great week! We had a wonderful dinner at a member's home and talked with them a lot about the Holy Spirit and how it guides their family. I'm so grateful for the gift of the Holy Ghost and the guidance that I receive from Heavenly Father. It was so cute, their little boys wanted to bear their testimonies to us and tell us about what they believe in. One is 7 and the other is 5 and they had such powerful, simple testimonies of God and Jesus Christ!
We also went to talk to a woman that one of our investigators referred us to. Around here, most people we talk to have some sort of belief in God and Jesus Christ, so we typically just ask them "Do you have a belief in Christ?" expecting a "Yes". We were both caught off guard to have her say no! She proceeded to explain that she is actually a Wiccan! It was very interesting and a new experience for me. She was very curious about the Book of Mormon though and asked for a copy to read. I really hope she does read it and is able to learn more about Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.
On Saturday, we had such a great lesson with Tracy! Before now, she had been curious to learn more and liked talking to us, but wasn't very committed to it. She had asked us about her purpose in life and if there was anything in the Book of Mormon that could answer her questions about it. Yes there is!! :) We gave her a chapter to read in Alma 34 and a couple of pamphlets with some further study questions and scriptures to read. She absorbed everything and was so excited to meet and talk more about it! It was so amazing to see her face light up with joy as she learned about God's plan for her and her purpose in being on Earth. She is so humble and eager to learn and I am so grateful for the opportunity to help her understand and find peace. It ended up being an interesting lesson because Sister Lewis got sick during it...but the Spirit prevailed and we were able to finish the lesson! After that, we went home so Sister Lewis could sleep and recover for the rest of the day. But it was wonderful knowing that we had helped Tracy and that she is excited to learn more! I love being able to serve and help other people and teach them the simple truths that I know. It's so important that we share this knowledge and hope found through Jesus Christ with all we come in contact with!
Com amor,
Sister Dieter

Tender Mercies

This has been a great week! We have had so many fun and amazing experiences and I am so grateful to be able to be here and see people grow and change. We had interviews with our mission president, which are always so nice. I love President and his wife and I am grateful for their service. We had a couple of wonderful experiences this week with meeting new people! We knocked on someone's door and this woman came out to talk with us. She has been going through some really hard times and opened up to us so much. She even got emotional at one point. It still amazes me how much people will open up to these 20 year old girls they've never met before. It really shows me that we are called by God and that we do have this authority to represent Jesus Christ and teach people His gospel. There's no other explanation. But she was very sweet and told us we were like angels on her doorstep. We said a prayer together and will meet again this week! We also had a couple of great and really fun lessons this week with families! One involved using dirt pudding to discuss the gospel and the others involved games and activities that got them all involved. They were fun and everyone involved was able to learn more and feel the Spirit. I love being able to teach people more and see their families grow closer together as they accept the restored gospel.

Something I have realized this week is how simple the plan is, yet how important it is to keep following it! We have to continually exercise our faith in Christ, repent of our sins, renew our baptismal covenants (promises), and be worthy of the presence of the Holy Spirit throughout our entire lives. Life is hard and so many unexpected things happen that don't make sense. But, I know that God loves all of us and that He is there to help us learn. Everything that happens is for a reason, even if we don't know what that reason is yet. We just have to have faith and trust that whatever God wants to happen will help us in the end. I am grateful for the gospel in my life and I know that as we keep the commandments, we find true happiness!

Sister Dieter

Look what we found on our GPS this week! :O

The Gospel through Dirt Pudding :)

Life is Funny Sometimes

This week has been quite interesting -- full of strange, wonderful, and great experiences! It snowed AGAIN, about 6 inches! Also, a couple of quotes of the week...

We were teaching our 9 year old investigator and his family, who are trying to come back to church. We were talking about the importance of setting goals and planning how to reach them. His older brother related it to cross country and how he has to set goals and practice to get better. The 9 year old then proceeded to say..."This man (pointing to his brother) has got a hundred dollar body, and a MILLION dollar legs!!" It was so incredibly random and we all were in tears! He's such a funny and good little kid. :) Also, while biking around town we stopped to talk to some men who were outside. After a few minutes, one of them interrupted us and said, "Well, honey, we sure love y'all, but we are drunk on liquor right now!" I'm glad they gave us some warning...they then continued on to dig up a small tree and re-plant it a foot away in the middle of the driveway...it was interesting to say the least.

We also had some really wonderful experiences this week! We were finally able to meet a less-active woman who we have been trying to get in contact with for the past 5 months! She is so sweet and told us several times how glad she was that we stopped by. It was amazing to see her open up and really just light up. We also had dinner with a less-active sister who is starting to come back to church again. She had us over for Valentine's day and we were able to share more with her friend who was there as well. It is amazing to see this woman change! She woke up one Sunday and knew that God wanted her back at church. So, she just got up and did it! She is so excited to be learning again and growing in her testimony and faith.

We had several experiences this week in which we got to talk with some very religious people and discuss our faith. It is neat to hear their beliefs and to be able to share ours and add upon them. I know that the things we have to teach bless lives. I have seen how living the gospel of Jesus Christ changes people. As we have faith, repent of our mistakes, are baptized, and strive to follow the Holy Spirit and be obedient to God's commandments for the rest of our lives, we will find strength and peace. I know that God is always there for us. He is never far away, but He also will never force us to come to Him. He loves us so much that He has allowed us the freedom to choose our path. Every day, we are given experiences and opportunities to learn from. Though we may not be able to choose our circumstances, we can decide how to react to them. I have been trying to reflect throughout each day by asking myself, "What can I learn from this experience?" As I have done so, it has helped me to appreciate the little things more and to find miracles in each day. I know that God loves me, and that we are all special to Him. He has a plan for us to follow, and it is up to us to choose if we will or not. I know that it is hard, and I certainly am a witness that we are not perfect. But, as we show God that we are trying, He will work through us to make miracles happen!

Love,
Sister Dieter

More snow!

Sister Lewis and I

Biking :)

Happy Valentine's Week!

Hi everyone! Hope you are all doing well! This week has been pretty interesting, definitely some unexpected things, but that's how life goes! Winter is definitely here in North Carolina, but I'm told it won't last much longer. 
This week we had some pretty great miracles! We were out biking one day, and planned on stopping by a few people to visit. None of them were home. As we rode past one man's house that we have talked to in the past, I felt like we should just stop and see how he was doing. He came outside and we were able to talk with him for about 40 minutes! It started pouring, but that didn't even matter, it was so great! He has a ton of questions about Jesus Christ and about faith, our purpose in life, etc etc. It was wonderful to be able to share my testimony with him and the things that I know because of the gospel. I just felt so much concern for him and knew that God loves Him a lot! Another neat experience...we stopped by a less-active member's home, but they weren't there. We stopped to talk with her neighbor who was outside, but busy and had to go. Before we left, we asked her if she knew anyone that needed a message about Christ. She referred us to a house down the street, and the man there happens to be the son of a less-active member! He is willing to meet with us! It goes to show that if you follow the guidance of the Spirit and work hard, great things will happen! This past Sunday, a lot of people were at church that hadn't been there in a while! It was great to see them and that they are doing well. What was even better was to see the other members welcoming them so openly and striving to get to know them. 
This week, in honor of the holiday I suppose, I am working on learning how to love people more and to show that through kindness. I know that everyone we see is a child of God and that they are important to Him. We have the ability to change their lives through small acts, whether it be sharing our testimonies, or even just a smile or an encouraging word. People need love and as we strive to develop that charity for others, we will be happier, they will be happier, and the world will be a much better place. Everyone has trials, weaknesses, and setbacks. But as we are patient with one another and do our best to be kind, we all change experience change and become better! I'm so grateful for the opportunity that Christ gives me to learn, to improve, and to change. I can't imagine not being able to do so...I would just feel so stuck and pointless. I'm grateful to know that we all have the potential to be better. What can you do this week to show others that you love them?

Sister Dieter

Snow!

Hello everyone! This was definitely a different sort of week. We got a few inches of snow and freezing rain on Tuesday, and as a result pretty much all of our appointments for the week were cancelled. They don't have the funds for plowing down here, since it usually doesn't snow much. So basically everyone just stays inside for a few days until the ice melts off the roads. I definitely learned a lot about patience this week! Despite the weather, some really great things happened this week! We had a wonderful lesson with a less-active man in another member family's home. They just reached out to him in love and support, and it was a very special experience. I can testify that a little love and charity goes a long way in changing someone's life. We can all reach out to those who are struggling and bring them comfort. We were also able to go on base to meet with an investigator's sister who was in the naval hospital because of an traumatic miscarriage. We were able to share more with her about the plan that our Heavenly Father has for us and that there is a way for her to be with that child one day. She was also able to receive a blessing of comfort and she told us she felt much better afterwards. It was a very special experience and I am so glad that we were able to help her in some way. Also, this week we have been really hoping and praying for someone that we can teach who is committed to learn and to change their life. Well, we got a text from some other missionaries in Arizona telling us that their investigator will be moving here to work for the Marine Corps and that we will be finishing teaching him! He is excited to be baptized and his member fiancée and he are planning on being married in the temple next year! Although things are not always easy, it is so worth it! Heavenly Father blesses us daily in so many ways!
Something I have been thinking about this week is the analogy of faith being like a seed. The seed itself is great; it has all the components necessary to become a strong, tall tree. But, that seed requires some nourishment and care to grow. We have to pray, read the scriptures, attend church, and strive to be obedient to the Lord's commandments in order to "water" our seed of faith and help it grow stronger and bigger. If we neglect that plant and it begins to wilt and die, it isn't because the gospel and the truth we believe in (the seed) was bad or wrong, it's because we weren't working to take care of that testimony. If we won't water our plant, the heat of the sun can scorch it so much easier. I know that no matter what point your "seed" is at in it's development, there is always opportunity for it to grow again and even more. What will you do this week to nourish that seed? :)


Sister Dieter

This is what two inches of pure ice and snow without any plowing or salting looks like!