Megan's Letter 12/26/16

I hope everyone had an amazing Christmas!!!

I got to talk to y'all yesterday so I'll keep this pretty short.

At church yesterday Bishop Jones spoke on "re-gifting" the gifts of Christ. While it's not always a good idea to re-gift our presents, the gifts Christ gives to us can and should be passed along to those around us. Some of those gifts are charity, service, obedience, the gospel and ultimately salvation. We can "re-gift" those things by loving and serving our family, obeying Heavenly Father's commandments, sharing the gospel with those around us, and doing temple work to give salvation to those who have passed on.

"Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me."(Matt 25:40)

Here's some pictures from the week! Hope y'all have a happy New Year :)

Megan's Letter 12/19/16

Happy Almost Christmas!!!

So I went to an exchange with Sister Kennedy in Alex City this week! There is a tiny branch there that meets in an old house that's been changed into a church. It was really cool to see! Sister Kennedy is from California! She is only in her second transfer but she is so solid. I love her!

This is Sister Owen's. She is a member in a nursing home that we go visit every week! She is such a sweetheart. We have come to be pretty close with her!

The Christmas party was this week! It was so much fun. President Sainsbury let us watch Zootopia! It was adorable. I also got to see Sister Moline and Sister Benioni. I had't seen or talked to either of them much since I was in Tuscaloosa! I love these two so much.

The work has been a little slow lately since everyone has been busy or out of town for the Holidays! We have been doing a lot of Less Active visits. I think working with Less Actives is equally as important as finding new people to teach! It has been really cool to talk with them and to ask them about their conversion stories or testimonies. 

This morning in my studies I was reading one of my favorite Bible Stories in Matthew 14! It's the story of Christ walking on the water, and Peter walking out to Him.

 28 And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water.

 29 And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus.

 30 But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me.

 31 And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?

I love that last line! Sometimes it seems as if all the winds and waves of the world are beating against us, and we fail to see the Savior right in front of us- reaching out to pull us up to where He stands. I know He is there because I am constantly calling out for His help, and He always comes to my aid. Not always in the way I want or expect, but in ways that will be best for me in the long run. I love the Savior and the Holiday that we get to celebrate His birth. I will talk to you on Sunday Fam! Have a great week (: I love y'all!

-Sister Merrill

Megan's Letter 12/12/16

We kicked off the week with Zone Training on Tuesday. It was a really good chance to get to know everyone in the zone. (: We are all working really hard to have a "white Christmas"!

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Thursday was the temple trip! I am so grateful for the opportunity we have to visit the temple every few months in this mission. Gordon B Hinckley once said:

"Everything that occurs in the temple is uplifting and ennobling. It speaks of life here and life beyond the grave. It speaks of the importance of the individual as a child of God. It speaks of the importance of the family and the eternity of the marriage relationship."

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Friday I went on exchange with Sister Beck! She is hilarious and super sweet all at once. We decided to take a quick stop at the bamboo forrest in Hawaii (;

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The people in Millbrook are loving the Gospel of Jesus Christ! Right now we are working with some amazing people. We are teaching a funny and loud southern lady named Erica, along with her dad and her daughter. They have so much real intent, we are just waiting on them to keep commitments! I met Molly and Joe for the first time last night! They are a cute country couple and they are so prepared for the restored gospel. They are (hopefully) coming to visit the church this Sunday! We set a tentative baptism date for them for January 7th. 

I am really growing to love Millbrook! I am so grateful to be sharing this message during the Christmas season (again). I hope everyone has a great week (:

-Sister Merrill

Megan's Letter 12/5/16

I had to say bye to everyone in Madison this week! I also had the opportunity to teach Diana one last time. It's hard to leave people who are progressing so well, but I know she will stay on this path she's on. (:

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Transfers were on Wednesday and MLC was on Friday! Sister Saatkamp is my new companion. She is so sweet. (:

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I can't believe it's been one whole year since I left. Time flies.

Well my first week in Millbrook we had a baptism so I guess we are off to a good start!(; Just kidding I didn't have to do anything for this one. Danielle is so sweet! She was brought to the gospel by her dad at the lowest point in her life. Sometimes God gives us trials to humble us, that way we can see the truth. (: Her little boy Jackson is 8 and wants to take the lessons now!

Last night was the Christmas Devotional! My favorite talk was by Brother Douglas D. Holmes. He talked about God's infinite gifts to us that we often times leave unopened! One of those gifts is the Holy Ghost. He said that the Holy Ghost is how God's love is made manifest to us. I have seen that same spirit change people as they embrace the gospel into their lives. 

This month our goal as a mission is to have a "White Christmas". We are working really hard to get people to the font or to the temple! I was recruited to make the sign that'll go on everyone's doors. That was fun. (:

Christmas is coming soon! I hope everyone has been participating in the church's "Light the World" initiative. I promise if you do your Christmas will be much more meaningful! Talk to y'all next week. (:

-Sister Merrill