Week 13

HAPPY EARLY BIRTHDAY 'MERICA!!! I'm so excited that I'm in the states for the 4th of July. It's really one of my favorite holidays (thanks to my momma). In honor of this wonderful country and it's birthday I thought I'd share a couple blonde moments Sister Biggs and I had this past week...no shame. 

-Sister Biggs was talking to me in the car and said, "When I came to America....uh, I mean Florida..." 

-We were talking to a member about something, I don't remember what, and they said, "I think it was the President before Obama...". Of course I had to help them out and said, "Oh you mean George Washington!" WOW. 

Anyways...One of my favorite miracles from this past week happened when we were trying to contact a member of our ward. We couldn't find where she lived based on the address that we had. We felt like we were on the right street and at the right house, but the house number was just 1 number off. We prayed and felt like we should knock anyway. We knocked on the door and the woman who answered introduced herself (it was a different name than who we were trying to find). She invited us in to say a prayer with her. She told us that she had just lost her job the day before. After we prayed with her the spirit was strong and she accepted baptism. We haven't seen or heard from her since, but it was a miracle none the less. 

God has given us our agency to choose whether or not to obey him. Obedience seems to have been the theme of my studies this week. Over and over we're promised that when we read the scriptures they will lead us in the path of obedience and when we are obedient to the commandments we "shall prosper in the land, and your enemies shall have no power over you." (Mosiah 2:31) 

"And moreover, I would desire that ye should consider on the blessed and happy state of those that keep the commandments of God. For behold, they are blessed in all things, both temporal and spiritual." (vs 41). 

God will take care of our every need as we put him first. I know I need to trust in that promise more. As we go back to the basics of reading the scriptures and praying, God can protect us just like he did for Zeniff and his people when the Lamanites were attacking them. They prepared with weapons and did all they could. Then they cried unto the Lord in prayer (Mosiah 9:17). "And God did hear our cries and did answer our prayers; and we did go forth in his might; yea, we did go forth against the Lamanites, and in one day and a night we did slay three thousand and forty-three" (vs 18). Moral of the story: If you're not already, KEEP THE COMMANDMENTS! Repentance is real. Go back to the basics of reading and praying every day so that God can bless and protect you both spiritually and physically.

Our recent convert, Jesus, is an amazing example of this. We met with him last night and he told us that ever since he's been giving his life up to God he has had success and health. He got a new job, has been making a LOT more money, he's been healthier than ever before. This man has been drinking since he was 13...let me say that again...13! Since he stopped drinking he's been to the doctor. The doctor couldn't believe how healthy he his. They told him that his liver is like a babies liver. It's perfect! God really does bless us when we follow the commandments with exact obedience!!

 I LOVE YOU ALL!!!!! 

Sincerely,

Sister Matheson

pic 1: We helped Bonnie pack and move...she's gone now :( I found this cheese hat among her belongings so obviously I had to put it on. 

pic 2 and 3: Stephanie and Larissa who got baptized right before I came into the ward. They're adorable. We went to a nursing home to visit a friend of Stephanie's mami and got dinner afterward