"To Love Another Person is to See the Face of God"

Last night, I had a bit of a hard time sleeping, and for some reason I started thinking about Les Mis. I really don't know why. But as my mind ran through the lyrics, this line from the finale stood out to me:  "To love another person is to see the face of God."  

In church on Sunday, I was asked to bear a short testimony since it would be my last Sunday in the branch, and I felt impressed to share the story in John 21:15-17 ... "So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my lambs.  "He saith to him again the second time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my sheep.  "He saith unto him the third time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? Peter was grieved because he said unto him the third time, Lovest thou me? And he said unto him, Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee. Jesus saith unto him, Feed my sheep."  The Gospel of Jesus Christ is love. It is looking beyond yourself to something greater and far more important than the day to day - to eternal salvation. And our own eternal salvation is found as we focus on others. 

 For the past eighteen months, I have been privileged to devote my time to serving my fellow men and to serving God. I have seen people at their worst and their best. I have celebrated with them, mourned with them, and helped them through the day to day. They've helped me through the day to day as well. I have seen the Lord put me in people's lives - and put others in mine - at exactly the moment when they were ready to give up. I have felt sorrow as they have decided to turn another way, and rejoicing as they've accepted the love of our Father in Heaven and allowed it to change their lives. I have felt my own love for those around me expand to measures that I hadn't imagined were possible.   And as I have loved these people, I have seen the face of God. I have seen His hand in their lives and in mine. And I have felt His love for me more than ever before. 

 This isn't an experience that only missionaries can have. The commandment that Christ gave to Peter remains in force for each and every one of us. If we truly love Christ, we will serve Him by serving others (Mosiah 2:17). And as we do so, we will find that we love Christ even more than before, and that we are loved by Him in ways that we cannot fathom.  I want to continue being a tool in the Lord's hands for the rest of my life on earth and in the life to come. There are so many around us who are in pain and searching for the truth. Let us not leave them groping in the darkness, but be a light to lead them home - whether or not we wear a badge.  

Love,

Hermana Garner

service project

A Bit of a Tough Week

We've been struggling a bit this week. We haven't been finding anyone to teach, and the people we have been teaching have either plateaued or dropped off the face of the earth.   One investigator really seemed to be having a breakthrough in his personal understanding of the gospel. But on Saturday, he sent us a text asking to meet up in the morning for just 5 minutes. With him, just 5 minutes isn't possible, so we were a bit worried that he wanted to keep it short. We met him at the church, and he told us he was going back to Mexico to help his family with a transition - and he didn't know when he'd be back.   We were disappointed, but said we'd see him when he got back and we'd keep in touch. He doesn't have Facebook or Whatsapp or any communication really other than text, and he said his phone doesn't work in Mexico. So at this point, we're praying for missionaries to find him wherever he is and that he'll keep building the desire on his own and not forget what he's experienced here. He was so sweet, though, he gave us a card saying thank you for everything and a $50 gift card to Applebees.

  Saturday night, we went to another investigator's house and helped them in the yard, and afterwards played the Gospel Game of Life - we took the game of life and made our own cards for it with choices related to the gospel. It was actually super fun! The point of it was to help see how the decisions we making now can move us forward or hold us back. Life really is so much easier when we follow Heavenly Father's plan for us! 

 On the bright side, I found out that someone who was baptized is going back to church!!! I'm so happy!! 

It's weird to imagine not being a missionary. I'm not sure I'll know what to do with myself. Everyone keeps bringing up how little I have left and I kind of just want to forget about it haha. But as bittersweet as it is, I am looking forward to the next chapter. And it's amazing that I'll get to still be easily in contact with those I've come to know and love here in Gilbert!

Love,
Hermana Garner

An Incredible Week and a half of Missionary Work!

So much has happened since last p day that I don't even know where to start! But the blessings and miracles of the Lord never cease to amaze me, and I have so, so much joy in serving the Lord! 

We have a fairly new investigator that we've started getting in with, and he's incredible.  I see in him a true desire to find the truth. He has real intent, and though he's incredibly busy with work, he's making time for us and doing all he can to keep his commitments. Yesterday we had a lesson with him, at the time that he set up, and learned that it was right in between his two jobs. He had worked all night, slept about two hours, and then met with us at 10:30 when he had to work again at 11:30. I was shocked when he told us that. He's truly willing to make sacrifices to find the truth. 

  We've seen a lot of progress with another investigator this week. He's opened up to us in incredible ways, and he came to church this past Sunday with his son! We talked about baptism, and he's praying about getting baptized on March 3rd! He seems pretty iffy about it, but he's getting closer and closer and starting to recognize the blessings of the gospel in his life. I also just love him and his kids so much -  his son, picked out a giant jar of Red Vines when they were at the store, and gave it to us when we showed up for our lesson that day. It was so sweet! 

 I've felt so much love from the Lord and the people in this area this week! We went by a potential from back when I was serving with Hna Cedeño, the Ruelas family - the one with the kid who gave me a rock from his collection when I was sick. They remembered me and let us in, they were very friendly. As we left, I complimented the nativity that they had sitting on their end table - and they picked it up and GAVE it to me! I tried to tell them no, but the mom said, "Take it - So you can always remember the Ruelas family." It touched my heart so much. 

I felt great love from the Erazos this week. The Erazos are one of the families in the branch, and I've

become very close to them. Hna Erazo is the one who taught me to make pupusas, and she's been such a support to me. When I went home, she got my number from Hna Cedeño and texted me to check in the whole time I was home.  Well, this weekend we had dinner at their house. She made pupusas because she knows how much I love them. We enjoyed just talking, all of us together, and then Brother Erazo (not her husband, her brother) went inside to get the dessert. He came back out with a cake, and set it in front of me. On it was written, "Thank you for your service Sister Garner." I burst into tears.   It's hitting me more and more that this is coming to an end. And as excited as I am for the next phase of my life, it's incredibly bitter sweet. There's nothing better than being a missionary and being completely devoted to serving your brothers and sisters. You feel so much love for the people around them and can see their divine potential even when they can't. I want to continue to foster that as much as I can for the rest of my life.

Love,
Hermana Garner

The Lord Leads and Guides Us!

First things first - p-day won't be on Monday next week (I know Mom, I'm sorry!! I was looking forward to emailing on your birthday!) It will instead be on Wednesday, Valentine's day. I don't know exactly why, but that's what they're doing.  ​

Celebrating Sister Barlow's birthday, which is this Wednesday (hence why she's wearing a crown)

We had a really incredible lesson last Monday night. It was with an investigator I'd never met. We decided to teach the third lesson, which is the Gospel of Jesus Christ - Faith, Repentance, Baptism, The Gift of the Holy Ghost, and Enduring to the End. She was on board the entire time, and very much wants to learn. As the lesson came to a close, I felt really strongly that we needed to put her on date for February 24th. We hadn't talked about that at all, but then Sister Hanson extended the invitation for the exact same date I was thinking about, and when we left told me she'd felt that the moment we walked in for the lesson. It's amazing how the Spirit lets us know what's right and the witness of knowing this is the Lord's work when we're completely on the same page.  

We had a number of experiences like that throughout the week, including another great lesson with a potential who turned into an investigator.  We taught the restoration, and he was engaged and attentive the whole time and said he wanted to come to church.  He said that if he knew it was true he would be baptized, but we didn't bring up a date or anything yet.  

I've been running into quite a lot of people that I worked with in this area before, who had since fallen off the map but are not coming back out of the woodwork. It's interesting. One of them is is someone  who Hna Cedeno and I were helping prepare for a mission. Well, he had completely stopped coming to church and said that he wasn't ever interested in coming again. But we had an incredibly spiritual lesson with him and his mother on Saturday night. In the middle of the lesson, I just felt overwhelmed by the spirit and looked at him and said, "God loves you." I could tell it touched him, and the feeling was so strong in that room. The next day, he came to church!! And he set up an appointment for this Wednesday. He says he still has some questions for us but he admitted that he feels something different when he's at church.  

Everyone keeps asking me if I'm trunky. I keep wanting to say, "Well, if you'd stop bringing it up, I wouldn't be!" But generally, when I'm working, I'm not. There are just sad moments when I realize how little time I have left.   

​Favorite quotes from Sister Hanson this week: "Did the bank try to get robbed?" and, when we saw a helicopter and she was joking about flying it, she said, "Who needs a license when you have video games?"​

People had mentioned the Super Bowl this week, but Sister Hanson and I both completely forgot and planned to go knock doors RIGHT in the middle of it ... We walked up to the first door and froze as we heard the announcer and just looked at each other. We quickly changed our plans haha. We knocked a couple doors, but people weren't exactly happy with us lol.  It's not as bad as Sisters Showalter and Shaffer, though - they interrupted a wedding this week!! The door opened and they were having a wedding in the kitchen of the house and everyone just stared at them. AWKWARD!

Love,

Hermana Garner