..............how grateful we are for the atonement, because that's what has changed us, it's what has changed me!

Once again...left speechless, unsure of where to start! But wow! The Lord.is.INCREDIBLE!

 

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! New Years Eve evening, my companion and I sat on our beds, read journal entries to each other, and talked about what changes we have seen in ourselves throughout our missions...it was really special! (AND it was really fun to do with my best friend Sister Bailey! ;)) We ended our conversation by just realizing how grateful we are for the atonement....because that's whats changed us, it's what has changed me! I am not the Sister Ensign I was 10 months ago, and our Heavenly Father and Savior Jesus Christ, through the Holy Ghost, have helped make that possible! I still have a long ways to go, but I'm so grateful for them and their ability to help change me...hahah I can't wait to read you guys my journal when i get home!

 

My week started a bit...actually... it started GREAT...Monday night was spent on the bathroom floor all night; but how grateful I was and still am for this road bump, because it truly was huge blessing  to see the power of the priesthood work mighty miracles! Receiving a priesthood blessing and hearing what my Heavenly Father had to say to me was amazing, and so special, and the words which were spoken are unforgettable! The power of the priesthood has been restored and is perfect, it LITERALLY works miracles!!! it healed me in just 24 hours, and I'm so grateful that Heavenly Father allowed me to get up and keep working after just one day...I know that that never would have been possible without our Heavenly Father! MY testimony was also strengthened in the power of prayer and Scripture study! The sweet, and fervent prayer my companion offered as I layed on the floor, called down the powers of Heaven to bring peace and comfort when I felt REALLY... sick. She then read the scriptures with me and the exact passage we read, was sooo for me! IT was Alma 51 and  talked about the overpowering sicknesses of those who had "much fatigue which was caused by the labors and heat of the day"- my companion and I read it and just laughed:) But what a great boost that experience that brought to my testimony. especially the power and authority of the priesthood, as well as the power of prayer- in which the power of prayer can be accessed at any moment, for ANYTHING big or small. That is something I have learned on my mission, is to stop figuring things out Sister Ensign's way, and in my own head...but to inquire of the Lord always!

 

Friday night I had a dream about some South Africans and felt prompted to write it down...Well Saturday while driving from an appointment, my companion and I passed some people that we honked and waved to (like we do to everyone haha), and kept driving...I said to my companion, "should we turn around and go talk to them?"...we decided to keep driving, and then about 10 seconds later I said, "Lets go back!". Guess who it was...A SOUTH AFRICAN FAMILY (Beautiful mom and dad with the 2 cutest little girls ever) who is way close with some of our members (huge score!), AND they have been looking for an increased spirituality in their lives...ummm ok....miracle number 29347928734987 of our week! But it was just a cool experience for me to see that the Lord is preparing his children, and if we follow EVERY prompting, the Lord will bless us!

 

This week Sister Bailey and I went on a sweet road trip down to Bunbury, where we drove through the Australian dessert, as well as along the beautiful coast, to do exchanges with our Sisters down there! It was INCREDIBLE!!! On these 2 exchanges we were able to see MASSIVE miracles with finding heaps of investigators, as well as committing a lot of people to a baptismal date! The sisters in these area were kind of starting to feel a bit discouraged with the work seeming a bit slow, so we decided we would all focus on exercising Faith in Jesus Christ to see miracles!!! So that night and the next day we just went HAMMMM working so hard, and EXPECTING to see miracles- and sure enough! BOOM, they rain down! We just have to expect to see the good in life! Never doubt. And always see the good in all situations...as we do this and place of Faith in Jesus Christ, we will see MIRACLES!

 

Sam (our incredible investigator who I want to send pictures of, but this computer wont let me) :( Is doing incredible!!! She bore her testimony yesterday...ya know, just the usual for an investigator to do at church right?!?! haha she is beautiful! She was really sick earlier so we went over with our Relief Society president, shared a message, prayed for her to be healed and then invited her and each of us there to exercise faith in Jesus Christ...guess what! She called us the next day...she was completely better, AND on top of it...her leg (that has been ruined because of a spider bite years back...and swells EVERYDAY bringing pain), was also made whole and was perfectly fine! The power of prayer and faith in Christ, is incredible!!! It is the most beautiful thing to see those we teach, have their testimonies strengthened, and even share them with us and others around them! Sam is incredible and is getting so excited for her baptism on the 18th! Please keep her in your prayers, as this week she is doing the stop smoking program and needs a lot of help!

 

Last sweet experiecne i want to share, is about a lesson we had with Justin and Stacey (the parents of Kaleb and Tenesha who were just recently baptized)...We went over this week for a lesson with bishop where we finalized their marriage papers!!!! Ahhhh it was the greatest! We taught the Law of Chastity, and committed them to be married and baptized (literally 5 minutes after the wedding) on February 15th (the day after Valentines Day!!!)!!!! Ahhh it was the sweetest, and even better to just see the change in them over the past few months!!! As Stacey offered the closing prayer, and thanked Heavenly Father for helping them finalize the wedding and their baptismal date with so much happiness, Justin made an extra remark during the prayer to what she had just said (yes we are still teaching them proper respect during prayer haha), but he said so happily,

'SIGN, SEALED, DELIVERED!"

Hahahah they are so excited, and so are we! And the best part is, is the ward is putting on the whole wedding, and is going to make it sooo special (even though Justin and Stacey could be satisfied with hardly anything)! Our ward is incredible!

 

This week has been so good, it's week number 6 and so i pray that Sister Bailey and I stay in this area together! This morning while driving we were talking about how LITERALLY every single day we have been together, we have been brought to our knees, (as we randomly have to pull over the car, or during our bike ride/walk) and just pour out our hearts to Heavenly Father in gratitude for the miracles we are seeing! It's unreal! This has happened before on my mission with sweet miracles throughout the week, but this is now happening EVERY SINGLE DAY! It's beautiful and I'm so grateful!

 

I'm so grateful for you, and your support and love! I have a picture of our family at the front of my scriptures, and as i briefly pass it while using my scriptures in lessons, I am reminded of you guys...you are part of my motivation! Our family is so blessed, and I want so badly for other families to have the same blessings from the gospel that we do...so thank you for your beautiful faces, and your sweet spirits that remind me of why i want to work so hard! I love you guys!

 

xoxoxo love always,

Sister Diondra Ensign