A Letter from West Richland: Monday, April 22, 2013

Hi there family!! 

So this week has been a wonderful yet hard week all in one. Sis. Meyers and I are trying really hard to make sure that we are setting goals that are inspired by the Lord and working hard to achieve them. That has been one of our biggest struggles this week as so many people decided to cancel on us. During these times of trial it's sometimes hard to see what the Lord really wants us to learn from them but if there is one thing that I am sure of is that we do learn from them and we are stronger because of them. I have learned this week that through hard work and prayer and scripture study the Lord can speak to our hearts like nothing else can. Through our rough week we also saw a lot of miracles come from it that we didn't expect. The Lord is always willing to grant us those! Man he is good!! Our zone was pushing for each companionship to get 2 new investigators. Sis. Meyers and I had some people that were beautiful prospects to receive the gospel but alas... Satan worked his magic on them and at the end of the week they were still not progressing. BUT! While we were sitting in sacrament meeting we were thinking about a name that we had seen in our area book that sisters previously had been over to teach and give some serves to. We went over there last night and we didn't even have to say one word to her, she opened the door said hello and told us to come in! I think I may have stood there with my mouth open wide. The Lord blessed us to get one new investigator last night! Through us showing our faith in not forgetting about that goal, we were able to at least get one new investigator through our efforts. 
 
We were still able to each some really great lessons this week as we met with Anne, and the Bowman family and Miranda. On Tuesday President and Sister Greer came and did interviews and specialized training. Our specialized training was all on church attendance which is exactly what we needed!! Sis. Meyers and I have been trying really hard to get our investigators to come to church. One of the things they focused on was giving a church tour to our investigators. Sis. Meyers and I looked at each other and new that is exactly what we had to do!! So we set up a time with Miranda that we could go and have a church tour with her. It has so stinkin' amazing!! We took her around the church and showed where everything was and then ended up in the chapel. The spirit was so strong! We each bore our testimony on church attendance and how sacrament meeting is so extremely important. She ended up not coming to church the next day but I know that she felt the spirit. I know that all of us were changed because of that lesson. I am so grateful for the opportunity to go to sacrament meeting every week and partake of the sacrament and feel the comfort that it gives to me. 
 
We went and taught Anne this week. As we were reading the Book of Mormon with her she just kept saying how she had read something like this while she was reading the Bible. Every time was talked about it you could just see a different light in her eyes! That is why I love my mission!! So many little miracles like that along the way. We can't wait to go back and teach her more about the Book of Mormon and the Doctrine of Christ. I just can't say enough how much this work really just makes my like come full circle. I know this gospel is true. I know our Savior lives and loves us. I know through His infinite atonement that all things can be made right. I LOVE it so MUCH!

 

Love you all!! Sister Mecham

A Letter from West Richland: Monday, April 01, 2013

Subject: The field is white, already to harvest!

For the West Richland area that statement is so true!! We have been trying really hard to find the elect. And this week the Lord smiled down on us as we tried to do his will. We had receive a referral about two weeks ago from one of the senior couples that works in the office and told us to go and stop by this ladies house named Miranda. Well we kept going over there and knocking on the door and no one would answer. We talked about it and decided that we would try one more time and if she didn't answer than we were going to mark her has contacted and then try back in a couple of weeks. Well good thing the Lord knows best. We went over there, knocked on the door and again no one answered. We started walking away and just as we were about to open the gate and get back into our car, out comes Miranda from her house. Turns out she has been out of town all week and just came back. She was sick and so she couldn't meet then but we set up a return appointment to go back. I love how the Lord is in charge of this work. If it was my job, there would be so many things that I would miss and so many mistakes that I would make. So we go back and teach her all about the Restoration and she is just down right GOLDEN! She had taken the lessons when she was 14 with her mom who just recently passed away about a month ago. Her mom joined the church but she never did. She seemed to really soak it all in and really grab on to it. In the first 20 mins of sitting there talking with her, I asked her if she came to know that these are true, if she would be baptized. She sat there for a second and then said, "yeah, I would. I'm not against it in anyway." I couldn't stop smiling! Haha the Lord really truly is preparing hearts to recieve the gospel.

 

We met with Anne again this week and were about to help her understand more about the Word of Wisdom and how Jesus is the same as Jehovah. That was a really cool one to study and understand! We just need her to listen a little more and then her questions might just be answered as we go along. ;) She is so fantastic and things are going great with her!

 

We had another really cool experience this week has we were tracting. So last monday night we decided we were going to tract this street over in an area we just started to tract. We park our car, read some scriptures to get us more intune with the spirit and then get out of our car and start. Well as we are tracting, no one is answering their doors and we were just not getting a good feeling about being there. We all but ran to our car and drove away. We decided we would go back on Tuesday to finish when it was lighter outside. Oh how the Lord works in mysterious ways! So go back on Tuesday and after a little while, we are walking down the street and women walks out of this house. I say hi and tell her who we are and what not. She then starts to tell us about how she has been looking for a church to go to so she can help her kids. She is facing a lot of really hard life challenges and needs God in her life. We kept talking with her and set up a time for us to come back. She turns to us and says " Ya know, I know this was inspired. You were suppose to be here today. Look I've got the chills!" Sis. Duncan and I just stood there and all but cried. With our jaws all the way to the ground. We were suppose to meet Denise that day as we were tracting. The Lord will lead us where he needs us if we only listen to him.

 

Well family, I love you!! The church is true!!

 

Love, Sister Mecham

A Letter from West Richland: Monday, March 25, 2013

Subject: The Church is True!!!

Hello my wonderful family!! This week has been a great week!! There are days when I am out here that I look at the clock in the morning and think "for real?! 6:30 already?!" and then we get going and it is like all my days blend into one and before I know it, it's time for bed. haha it is a beautiful thing! On Wednesday we were able to go to the Temple. How it was absolutely beautiful! I was in heaven! After we went to the temple we had our District Meeting which always gets me excited for the rest of the week. Sister Duncan and I had a wonderful day planned and we just hoped and prayed that it all worked out.

 

So after District Meeting and lunch we went to our appointment that we had set up with a potential investigator. The Sisters before us had gone over and done a lot of service for her. She had moved from Idaho where she had previously listened to the missionary lessons, to West Richland awhile ago and one of her friends from a ward near by told her she should pick that back up again and start talking to the Sisters in her area. Well here we are! hah We walk up to the door and I'm just praying that we are able to get in and teach her and be able to know what she needs to hear. The beautiful thing about the Gospel is that it all centers on our Savior Jesus Christ. We get it and sit down and start to get to know her alittle bit better and start to answer some of her questions. We start to teach her about the Restoration and she brings up something about her not being able to let go of something that her ex-husband had done to her. It was one of those lessons where I knew that it wasn't me talking. It was totally the Holy Ghost. We pull about the Atonement and start helping her to understand that the Atonement covers EVERYTHING! We finished teaching her about the Atonement and tied it all back to the Restoration. At the end of it all, she looks at us and says, "I've never had it explained to me that way before." This is when I knew that she had gotten all that she needed to out of that lesson. We set up a return appointment to go back this week and watch the Joseph Smith movie with her. It is going to be wonderful!!

 

We met with Anne this week and answered some more of her questions about the Book of Mormon and the Bible working together. We were also able to get in and meet with an investigator that I had only met once before. Her name is Angela and she is a teenage girl. She has been taught all of the lessons but for her, like most of us, repetition is key. We were able to share the Joseph Smith movie with her and talk about. The minute we hit play on that movie, the spirit was SO incredibily strong. We helped her to see things a little clearer and helped her to understand why we needed a restoration and not a reformation.

 

Well my dear family. I love you all so very much. I miss you and at the same time, I wouldn't want to be anywhere else. I LOVE being a missionary!

The church is true!

 

Love, Sister Mecham

A Letter from West Richland: Monday, March 18, 2013

Subject: What a FANTASTIC week!!!!!

Hello there!!! This week has been wonderful!! Did I mention how much I love West Richland?! Because I do :) Well this week we started out kind of slow. After Sis. Duncan and I recovered from the stomach flu we hit the ground running. Like I've said in the past couple of emails, we have been trying really hard to make sure that we are in the right place at the right time and doing the right thing. Really trying super hard to listen to the spirit and do what the Lord has asked us to do. We've been trying really hard to get in with members and share Doctrine of Christ messages and ask for referrals. We were able to meet with some awesome Less- Actives and get them to commit to come to church on Sunday! Something that was confirmed to me this week is that obedience really does bring forth the blessings of heaven. As Sis. Duncan and I were trying really hard to be obedient and follow the rules, the Lord blessed us. We went over on Wednesday and set up and return appointment with a potential investigator Anne, the darling lady that I told you about last week. We set up a return appointment for Thursday afternoon!  Well the next day came and went to over to Anne's to share with her the Restoration. As we met with Anne were were able to answer her questions and help her get over somethings. It was then that I was so happy to be apart of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She was talking about how she had gone to so many different churches and how they all kind of taught different doctrine. When we explained to her that we believe that Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and the Holy Ghost are all separate beings she said to us " Okay you got one things right!" haha She is just the greatest! We challenged her to come to church and at 10:55 a.m who walks into church? Oh just our darling Anne! I could hardly move! I was so stunned to see her there!!! I was so happy!!!!! Hahah I'm sure I kind of freaked her out because I just wouldn't stop smiling. haha

 

That was really one of the biggest highlights of my week! The Lord really truly blesses us when we are trying so very hard to do what is right. Anyway, We have been teaching this Part memeber family in one of the wards and goodness do I love them! The Bowmans are fantastic! Brother Bowman is a less- active member and is the only member in his family. We have been teaching his daughter Lindsey who is a Junior in High school and his son Andrew who is in his 20's. Sis. Duncan and I felt really impressed to talk about the Doctrine of Christ last night as we met with them and focus on baptism... I always get nervous talking about baptism and extending that invitation. After sharing the messages and teaching there was just a long really quite spiritual pause and I felt like that was when we needed to ask Andrew and Lindsey to be baptized. So I just said it. haha I couldn't even control what was coming out of my mouth! haha After I said it, I just sat there and prayed that they would take it well. Turns out it is something that they would love to do but they just don't feel ready yet. They don't know when they will be ready but we challenged them to pray about when they should be baptized and focus on trying to do what the Lord wants them to do. After we left that lesson I was thinking really hard about what part of the gospel do they not understand yet that could be holding them back from making that commitment.  I came to the conclusion that it all comes back to the Atonement. They need to understand what the Savior has done for them so they will be willing to do all that they can for him.

 

I just want to all to know that I know the Atonement is real. I know that it is the infinite atonement and all things can be made right through it. I'm so grateful to know that!! I don't know where I would be without it. I can't wait to be able to go back and teach the Bowman family more about the Atonement and help them feel of our Saviors grace and mercy. I love you all!! The gospel is true!!!

 

Love, Sister Mecham