Shorty

Hey everyone :)
A shorty today. It has been a good week but I thought I would let you know I am being transferred back to OK, not quite sure yet where but I will let you know when I do find out :)
If you have not read the story of Alma the younger lately (Alma 26) take a look, the Lord really does love everyone!
LOVE,
SIS E

A lot of times you get to see Heavenly Father's children for who they are.

Hello :)
It has been quite the week. Honestly it has been one of those weeks where I really don't know what to tell ya. Lets just say, we did not burn up in flames, our area did not burn up in flames, and that was probably due to the surplus of fake tears that we were too stressed to cry. HOWEVER, there was no boring part this week.
We could say that the highlight of our week this week was Wednesday night. It was another really tough day with many things coming up unexpectedly and so at the end of the day my sanity was pretty much gone. I was craving a cookie dough brownie blizzard from DQ (Shoutout to BRADY). We typed in the gps Dairy Queen and the only one that popped up was in Holliday Texas 10 miles away. I WANTED ONE and so did Sister Esplin. Well we pull up to this dinky little dairy queen at 9:00 pm btw our curfew dont judge and then we headed home. It was quite literally in the middle of nowhere. We got home and the next day we told the elders what we had done. They said " you know there is one right across the street right?" OH MY GOSH....I am such a ditz. There definitely is one that you can see from our apartment. ONLY me. I just have to accept it I guess, and pray hard for my future FUTURE husband.
Even though it was a really hard week I had a moment this week where I was sitting with a 62 year old man and as he was crying I realized how special my calling is. The walls are able to be broken down as a missionary. A lot of the time you see Heavenly Father's children for who they really are. That is the greatest gift of all.

Here are some other not AS amazing gifts but maybe PRETTY CLOSE :)
It was a fun morning.

He KNOWS your name

Well my friends I am super excited because I got me some boots this week and they are wrapped up for my Birthday next week. There is a fair in town and I LOVE fairs so we are going to see if it will be open for Monday- pday. I totally lucked out because my birthday is on a Pday. Okay now enough of completely vain thoughts.
This week has been another really good one. It went by quite a bit slower but nonetheless it was a good one. The highlight of this week was definitely going to the temple in Oklahoma City on Wednesday. Can I just say God protects his missionaries. Mom and Dad I drove 2 and a half hours and we did not die! It was nice though to be there. The temple is such a blessing. It never seems easy to get there but I have a testimony that the peace we feel there is worth every trial we face to get there.
Miss Emily (deaf)! We were able to teach her on Tuesday and it actually worked. It was not without struggle but the spirit was there so we did something right. However, the whole time Sister Esplin would say something and Emily hardly understood her so then I would have to sign what it was and clarify and it went like that back and forth until we could get a sentence out. Well, when we got to the first vision it landed on Sister Esplin to say it. She looked a bit panicked and I was on the edge of my seat waiting to have to clarify things. You will not believe it but: She said the whole first vision and not once did we have to stop. She understood EVERY word. The church is true :) The spirit taught her in that moment and it was a miracle.
Yesterday at church I had a really neat moment.
I was sitting in the relief society and on my left was a deaf woman, on my right was a schizophrenic, and in front of me was a recovering meth addict. I was struggling to help the two on both sides of me and Sister Esplin was helping the woman in front of me but after a few minutes the spirit opened my eyes and whispered to me how blessed I am to be able to minister to them. I have the opportunity to be Christ's hands as I sign and his voice as I clarify to my right. Goose pimples (as they say in texas) filled my arms and I could not be more at peace. The savior will give us strength to do the things we think we cannot do on our own. I love Him, he is my saving Grace :) Turn to Him, HE KNOWS  YOUR NAME. YOU ARE NUMBERED AMONG HIS FOLD.
In the name of Jesus Christ Amen
Love
Sis E

There are no poor connections and the wifi is perfect!

I loved this week!!!

So many great experiences. I have such a testimony that as we are paying attention, God works in the details and that is what can bring us joy in this life. We are placed in certain paths for very specific reasons but we just have to be looking. 

Yesterday during church the bishop came into relief society and asked if anyone knew ASL. Both an investigator and I did but she wasn't real confident in her ability so she had me go. There was a non member woman who had come in the doors with a pamphlet to give to the bishop about getting a system for her to be able to come to church. She is deaf but does not know sign language completely, so an interpreter would not work. I was able to translate as much as I could to the bishop as she read lips and signed a bit. My heart was so full because we were able to set up an appointment to teach her this Tuesday. Such an incredible experience, I am so excited. 

Something that I have noticed about the members here is that they have such a profound understanding of building a relationship with God even though He is not right there. Because many of the families are military families, the husbands are deployed quite often and/or gone from the home. It is so cool to see these families make things work normally as a family with dad being out of town or overseas. Skype is a miracle. Our "skype" is prayer. Heavenly Father wants us to show Him that we want that relationship. When we do, He ALWAYS picks up. There are no poor connections and the wifi is perfect as long as we listen. I am so grateful to have been able to experience this by their example.

Steve got out of the hospital this week and he is doing well. He found out he won't be able to ever walk on his foot again so he has been a bit discouraged but we are keeping him in our care :) 

Sister Young and I had some fun car moments this week! We got quite lost and it was so stressful, but 30 minutes later we ended up getting to dinner. The best part about it is that we had been there several times before. Some things never change.

I am so grateful for the scriptures. TRULY and 100% as long as we are reading them the spirit will direct us in ALL things. This week sister young and I were studying for someone and when we came together the things we shared were EXACTLY the same. There was no doubt in our minds that the spirit directed us so perfectly. The spirit in the room was pretty cool and there were definitely tears.

Love you all,

Sis E.

Each day is a gift!

You never know what each day will bring. We had some unexpected things happen this week that had us on our knees more and exercising more faith.
        We got news Monday that our investigator Steve was sent to the hospital for hallucinating and shaking. We went to go visit him every other day and came to find out his Kidney had failed and he would have to be put on dialysis for the rest of his life. Steve was just waiting to get out of the nursing home (by then his foot would be healed enough to get wet) we were hoping for October, but now we are not sure what the plan is. The first day we went to see him, I almost did not recognize him, the poor guy was twitching and hallucinating and would start talking and then trail off. The next time we saw him he had rapidly decreased and it was clear he was in quite a lot of pain. The prayer we said with him that day was one of the most spiritual experiences. The spirit is strong even when the body is weak. We prayed holding each other's hands and at the end of the pray I felt him squeeze my hand with the little strength he had in him. I am so so so grateful for that simple gesture of fight in him showing us that he knew what we were doing and why we were there. That night we prayed so hard for him and God delivered. We went to go see him a couple days later and he looked at us right when we walked in. We said "it is the sisters!" He said "Thank God, I love you guys so much" Granted he was just out of surgery for his dialysis and was a bit loopy but he looked 100 times better. Even though he was crying the whole time we felt so blessed to be able to experience such a miracle. We were able to pray with him that time and he mustered up a smile in the tiny corners of his mouth. Let me say this again, the human spirit is strong. 

        This weekend we went to go see Melinda and it was the most fulfilling lesson! We have been working on teaching the Restoration the past few times. This time we were trying to get her to understand the importance of priesthood. She finally got it, and it took quite some time but I lit up so much and stood up so excited. There is nothing better than seeing someone be able to learn and know Christ better! It is going to take some time but now she has been at church three times and is taking notes. I love that girl!

Not just names, these are people I love

Hello Everyone,
I hope you had a lovely fourth of July. We had a lot of fun and spent time on Sheppard Air Force Base. This week I have started to fall so in love with the people we spend each week with. Christ has shown me so much love for them and I am starting to get really attached to them. There have at the same time been many events that happened that caused me to get on my knees for them.

Melinda- came to church yesterday and we were so excited. We are not sure how much she really understood but when she got home she told her foster mom that we baptized her at the church in a blue dress. It was quite alarming to us and we are really worried about how much we can prepare her and how well she will understand the gospel. She is such a special daughter of God and all I want for her is to be able to know in all purity Heavenly Father. However, I am sure she has a special relationship with them far before this earth life.

Mike and Steve- It was Mike's birthday this week, he turned 54. He has never been married or had kids and we knew that no one would come to visit him, so we planned something special. He has been sick now for a whole month and was not in the best of shape when we saw him. We came in with the squeaker things you blow in for birthdays and also a couple Happy Birthday banners. We made him put on a birthday hat on for a few minutes. He was so surprised and I know that it was love that he needed. We had a lesson with just Steve and he was so prepared and knew that the things we were teaching were true. His heart is so open to the spirit and he has such a desire in his eyes to understand, I love him so much. Last night we received a call from Mike saying that Steve did not know if Joseph Smith could in any way be a prophet and if it wasn't resolved we would need to stop teaching him. It came out of nowhere and broke my heart. That is where my faith has to come in. I cannot make Steve know that Joseph Smith was a prophet but I KNOW the spirit can. We are going to need to go into this coming lesson with complete trust in the Savior.

Terry- (A recent convert from California who moved here to get away from her drug and alcoholic past) She has had a really rough week. The 18 year old homeless boy she has living with her got arrested this week for breaking and entering as well as stealing. The problem and the blessing is that Terry has such a good heart but she gets herself in bad situations. She is such an amazing, strong woman for pulling through all the hard things she has done. We are worried about her and the people she is around. The way she applies the gospel in her life is remarkable. I TESTIFY that the Atonement works and that the power of your Savior Jesus Christ heals ALL wounds. I am so grateful to be a missionary and to be trusted in this sacred work.

These are not just names, they are people that I love so dearly and I am turning over completely to the Lord. I am learning that when love becomes completely selfless, it is the love of Christ. When my thoughts are directed to the Salvation of Heavenly Father's children, this is when the change comes.
I love it here in Texas and I know that the Lord is shaping me and those around me through His grace. My companion is incredible! When I woke up this morning and looked in the mirror there were 20 notes waiting for me of scriptures and the sweetest comments. It said "Happy Six Months". She is teaching me how important it is to listen and turn my heart outward. God knew that I needed her and that hopefully I can be even the smallest impact on her. I am so blessed.
LOVE YOU MUCH!!!
-Sister Engelbrecht

GO TO CHURCH!

Life is made up of thousands of tiny moments in time that change us and help us mold into what the Savior wants us to become. That has never been truer to me than it has this past week.
We lost a couple elders in this area this week because the mission has had so many missionaries going home lately, but truly it has been a big blessing. Sister Young and I have been so incredibly busy this week which made this week feel like a blink of an eye.
Every night this week when I sat down to write in my journal, there was so much to write, but I felt so grateful for the outpouring of work the Lord has given us.
We gained 5 new people to teach, 3 of which are investigators.

Let me start by telling you about Melinda. She is a 27 year old who is in the foster care system. She has schizophrenia (I cannot spell it) and something else. Her mother and father and and aunt and grandparents are all dead. She has an aunt left who is just horrid. We met her because the elders had run into her from talking to her foster mom who happens to be a less active. We were able to teach her first lesson with them and she is incredible. She "sees spirits" and has a crazy imagination. The moment I met her I was overcome with love for her. She has been very mistreated her whole life and knew that as missionaries we had the potential be change her life through the message of the gospel and the healing power of the Atonement. As we taught her about God's love her demeanor calmed and she lit up as we talked about the savior she was smiling from ear to ear as she said "I love Him, Jesus, I love Him" Chills. The second time Sister Young and I went to teach her she felt the spirit so strongly that she was shaking and in awe. She kept telling us that she was able to feel the peace that she has been longing for. It is going to take us quite some time to teach her and make sure that she is accountable enough to be baptized but this girl, man she is incredible. Her baptism date is for August 8, 2015.

As far as the supreme court ruling on Friday, I want you all to know that I have a testimony of this gospel and I have absolutely no worry that God is going to take care of the hard times. I am grateful that we all have different perspectives, that was His plan for us all to be unique and we just have to love each other. We are told that the world is going to get more difficult and the only thing we can do is the simple things. GO TO CHURCH. READ and CLING to the scriptures. Most of all lets pray our hearts out and thank God for our freedom to believe in Him and His plan.

Lookuing back on this week I am reminded of so many faces and so many experiences that I feel so blessed to have been a part of. What made them even better is that I was 100% focused on each one of those moments and not worrying what was coming next. Quality time cannot be replaced.
LoVEs and KIsSes
SiS. E

-Sister Engelbrecht