Onward, Christian soldiers

Hey y'all!

Onward, Christian soldiers!

Marching as to war,

With the cross of Jesus

Going on before.

Christ, the royal Master,

Leads against the foe;

Forward into battle,

See his banners go!

This week has flown by! I can't believe it's already Monday again! :D There was lots done and we had tons of fun, as we always do on the mission. :) First off, I wanted to update y'all on Eddie. He fasted for 24 hours! He still hasn't received a full answer yet, but boy is he trying! Please keep Eddie in your prayers. He is really wanted to know if the church is true. :)

In other big news, if y'all remember I have been serving in three wards, and attending three wards for church. THAT'S A LOT. -.- So finally our mission president made the decision to take us out of Sandy Springs Ward. It's sad to say goodbye to these lovely people, but it's also a relief to only have to worry about Dunwoody and the YSA ward. :)

At the sign of triumph

Satan's host doth flee;

On, then, Christian soldiers,

On to victory.

Hell's foundations quiver

At the shout of praise;

Brothers, lift your voices,

Loud your anthems raise.

So we've had quite a few good experiences this week, but I'll only share a couple. :) We met a new investigator who is on date! :D Her name is Vicki, and he had gone online and ordered what we thought was a Book of Mormon. Come to find out, she actually ordered a Bible but the missionary at headquarters miss-heard her. Good thing for that too! Because of that, we were able to share with her the Book of Mormon. She is a very spiritual person, and readily accepted that there could be another book of scripture. What is even cooler though, is her story. This woman is such a trooper and a soldier. She has stayed true to the faith she has, even through all the trials she went through, both physical, financial, and emotional. And then the Lord put missionaries in her path 20 years ago! :D She told us she felt the spirit from the Book of Mormon when she read and studied with the missionaries, but for some reason, they didn't say much about Joseph Smith or tell her that Christ came to the Americas. Over time, the missionaries eventually dropped her, and now, 20 years later we are back! And she understands so much! She still has a lot of hurdles to climb over. She believes she has been saved, but understands a little more about authority and the apostasy. She also smokes, so this will be a bumpy road for her, but I know she can make it. Keep Vicki in your prayers! :D

Like a mighty army

Moves the Church of God;

Brothers, we are treading

Where the Saints have trod.

We are not divided;

All one body we:

One in hope and doctrine,

One in charity.

Another short miracle came when we were in Atlanta. We were suppose to go table at Georgia Tech, but things weren't working out with the procedures we had to follow and the Elders coming. Somehow we ended up at a park a little farther down, waiting to hear from the elders if we could go tabling. There, we met a man named Jake who was waking the softest pug I have ever felt! He was super nice, and as we shared our message, he was interested. He took a book of Mormon and told us to call him next week to see if we could meet with him. :) It was a pretty cool little tender mercy!

Onward, then, ye people;

Join our happy throng.

Blend with ours your voices

In the triumph song:

Glory, laud, and honor

Unto Christ, the King.

This through countless ages

Men and angels sing.

My last miracle was over getting one of our new investigators Jessica and her 5 children 6 and under to church! You see, she doesn't have a car. . . Or car seats. . . and to put the cherry on top, she doesn't know how to use MARTA. We spent two hours on Saturday after our first meeting with her trying to find some form of transportation. We said a prayer, asking pretty much for a miracle. I mean, 5 car seats and a car big enough for her and her children?! The Lord heard our prayers, though. :) And he made it possible for a member and her daughter to take the whole family, and had 5 car seats because the daughter's kids were staying with their dad that weekend. It was truly amazing how the Lord provided for this warrior mom and her army of 5 small children! Unfortunately, Jessica had to cancel the next morning as her mother recently was taken to the hospital. But the miracle was still there, and I am grateful that God heard and answered us. :)

Onward, Christian soldiers!

Marching as to war,

With the cross of Jesus

Going on before.

This week has truly been amazing. :) And I have loved every moment. As I reflect on this past week as even my time as a missionary this song comes to mind. Onward Christian soldiers, marching as to war. Which Jesus Christ going on before us. We are his army, as missionaries we fight many times on the front lines. But as members we are thrown into battle at any time. Whether it be a battle of moral, of doctrine, of belief in god, of families. It does not matter. We must continue on strong in the faith. We must fight. But sometimes that can be hard. For me, it's been hard to continue fighting, through the toughest of trials. But one scripture comes to mind when I am about ready to give up and I feel I cannot do it alone.

Deuteronomy 31:6  "Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the Lord thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee."

The part I want to point out is the last line. "he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee." The Lord will NEVER leave us. Throughout my mission I have found over and over again that I am being helped with the hosts of heaven. The name "Jesus Christ" that is written on my name tag is not only a sign to others that I represent Him, but that He is with me. That he is helping me. That I can do anything, and as long as I trust in him, he will never forsake me. He will never let me down. That is an amazing promise as a soldier, that when I wear the armor of God and fight, Christ is right next to me, fighting and helping. :)

Y'all's Southern Bell,

Sister Welch

Not a lot of pictures this week.  This just seemed like a very farmer house. That dog is real, by the way. Haha! :D