Bitter-Sweet Goodbyes and New Adventures

Becca and Sister K on her first week in Georgia.  

Hey Y'all!

So this week has been very successful, yet a little bittersweet. We have transfers this Wednesday, where I will be sending my amazing trainer and companion Sister Kanongata'a home. She has been the best companion and trainer to me! :) Me and the entire Flatcreek ward that she has been serving in for 14 months will miss her dearly!

But the Lord doesn't waste time saying farewell with tears, on Wednesday my companion will leave me and continue on with her amazing life outside the mission field. But the Lord has different plans for me. :) As of this morning, I was called to train a new missionary fresh from the MTC! The Lord is really hastening the work and I have seen it in my mission as he has kept me moving and progressing. Although this feels like a daunting task to take over an area and train a new greenie, I know the Lord is there to help me in this work. :) He won't leave me alone to do this by myself, but he will send helpers and miracles wherever I go.

This last week has been amazing. But, unfortunately, the woman we met at Home Depot never called us.  We plan to go there today and perhaps find her. :) Even though, we had a few disappointments like that, the Lord has counterbalanced them with amazing miracles and blessings!

Earlier this last week we had been given a few new referrals from the Spanish Elders serving in our stake. They had met this teenage girl named "H" who was very interested in learning more about the gospel. A couple days later, we headed over to contact "H" with an amazing member who is preparing to turn her papers in. :) What ended up happening was when we entered the house, we met the mother "D", and after just a few minutes of us explaining who we were and why we were here, "D" went on to tell her life story about an abusive husband who did all these horrible things to her and her two daughters. The man is now in jail, but the scars are still lasting from these three daughters of God. She went on to say that sometimes she feels like God was punishing her. How sad is that?! We testified to "H" and "D" of the loving nature of our Father in Heaven, and how sometimes things happen, and people have agency, but that doesn't mean that our Heavenly Father doesn't love us. He sent his son to suffer for our pains and afflictions so that He can help us through these trials. I hope their hearts were a little softened and minds a little more enlightened. We left them with a Book of Mormon and pamphlets on the restoration and plan of salvation. They were very interested, especially heather. She has read the bible twice! And the only reason they weren't reading the bible now was because the abusive husband/father had burned all their belongings, including their bible. We set up an appointment to see them the next day and give them two new bibles. We didn't get in to see "D" and "H", because "D" was sick, but we did meet H's sister and gave them their bibles. We will come back to see them next week and teach them more about our loving Heavenly Father! :)

Another amazing miracle happened on Friday. We were rushing out of our apartment to the car when we noticed an Asian man filling up a bucket of paint in the back of his van. He looked like a worker. As we passed by, we said hello and tried to talk to him. But guess what! He only speaks Korean! :O Oh no! He barely spoke broken English, and I was stuck on what to do next. But sister K came up, pointed at her name tag, and said "Jesus Christ!" He totally understood that and  lit up! We then gave him the Easter card about Christ and left him with a BOM. That's what you call teaching simply! Just a little while later we were at the mission office and had the idea to grab a Korean book of mormon for this man and drop it off to him on the way to our next appointment if he was still there. We raced back to the apartment complex to find his van still parked where he had left it. He wasn't there, but Sister K ran out and placed the book in the back of his car where he could see it. I really hope he read that book and ponders, then calls the missionaries! :D

Becca with Sister Hughes and her niece and nephew

Earlier that day we had another amazing blessing as we went out with Sister Hughes to see a long-time investigator "K" and her daughter "S". "K" is a very strong-willed and stubborn person, but she really likes missionaries to come over. She says that she really feels the spirit when we are there and loves everyone of our faith, but wont convert because of issues with blacks and church history, along with the organization of the church. She has been taking the discussions since before she even moved to Georgia! One of our members felt inspired after meeting "K" to have us take Sister Hughes to her. :) So we went, with Sister Hughes, and her daughter Rachelle who is a recent convert. The lesson was probably one of the best we had ever had with "K"! Sister Hughes completely answered almost all of K's concerns, while leaving her speechless, which is a very hard thing to do! by the end of the lesson, we left our investigator with a lot to think about and a commitment to come to church with "S".  

In the middle is Sister Hughes' daughter Jenna who recently left to serve
in the California Rancho Cucamonga mission.

NOTE:  Sister Hughes is the African American member in the Flatcreek ward who has been like a mother to the sister missionaries.  She was the only member of her family to convert to the gospel about 10 years ago. She became mother to her niece and nephew a couple years ago when her sister passed away, which is why her now daughter Rachelle is a recent convert.

Becca and Sister K with some ward members

This miracle, leads to the best miracle we had at church! "K" and her daughter did indeed come for two hours of church! Along with several of our less-actives. One family of which I had not seen at church since my mission started. They all came for Sister K's last Sunday. And since it was fast Sunday, we had several members bear their testimonies and talk about how impact-full Sister K has been in their lives. This really inspired "K" to go up and bare HER testimony, and talk about how much Sister K has impacted her too. The meeting left Sister K in tears. I honestly believe that "K" will be baptized one day, even though she said she won't. She will one day realize that the spirit she feels, that she has felt with all of the missionaries and members, is the Holy Ghost telling her that this is the place for her to be.

This past week has been filled with so many miracles that I can't even count! Every day has brought something new, and I wish I could share them all with y'all, but that would take FOREVER! So I'll stick with the ones I have talked about along with my testimony. The Lord really IS hastening his work. He is preparing so many people for the restored gospel that we can't even keep up as missionaries! But that's how it's  suppose to be. Miracles happen every day and people are progressing in every way because the time will soon come when the prophesy will come true, that this gospel "will go forth boldly, nobly, and independent, till it has penetrated every continent, visited every clime, swept every country, and sounded in every ear, till the purposes of God shall be accomplished, and the Great Jehovah shall say the work is done." I have a strong testimony of that. I have seen it here in Flatcreek and in the rest of my mission. The Lord is truly hastening the work, and we need to hasten out steps with him to keep it going and prepare for the day with the Savior will come again. :)

Y'all's Southern Bell,

Sister Welch