Week 12

4 days later and its pday again! Today has been really fun. We've gone finding at the shops in downtown San Clemente a few times before, but today we went just as ourselves and it was great. Finding there is pretty chill too though. We went on Friday night and met these two girls. One was very much interested and the other was very much not. We got their numbers and somehow broke off so we were talking to them one on one. I was with the uninterested one which was fine until it became an hour long contact. Sister Hill taught the other friend the entire plan of salvation and the girl started crying- it was crazy. She's so cool. Meanwhile I'm desperately trying to tell this girl about the restoration and it's going right over her head. So we basically small talked for an hour haha but she's a sweetie so it was good.

We went on base Saturday morning for our lessons. I got the most divine peanut butter smoothie from this little shack by our church building. I'll probably dream about it for years to come. The lessons went really well!! We can't proselite on base so the only way we can teach people is if they show up at church or we meet them on the streets. During the lessons, these two non member marines just walk in because they saw the cross on the building and we were like what is up. They were super intestered so we got into the nitty gritty of covenants, baptism, and the Holy Ghost and they're coming next Saturday for a lesson!!

Sunday was a few days long but a really good few days. Our marine friends came to church, we taught some lessons, the spirit was present, I learned a lot about the training marines go through- all around good. 

Our friend Hailey came to the ysa ward and she is SO COOL. Testimony meeting went crazy. I love hearing the ysa testimonies because this is the stage in life where we really find God and Jesus Christ for ourselves. One guy shared a 10 minute heartbreak story and it was quite sad so keep him in your prayers.

This week my testimony and love for the Plan of Salvation has grown so much. I love to study 2 Nephi 2 about the fall of Adam and Eve. In 27 it talks about how "men are free according to the flesh." We were reading Matthew 26 with our friend Wetterman this week and came across verse 41: "Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak." Our spirits are willing or want to follow God, but the reality is our flesh is weak (Mosiah 3:19), so we truly have to "watch and pray" or it won't be possible for us to overcome temptation. This takes immersing ourselves daily in the Book of Mormon (like President Nelson has said) and praying daily to our Father in Heaven. It takes remembering our covenants and keeping them or enduring until the end. Let's overcome the natural man!

I seriously am so grateful to be on a mission. I love serving the Lord and I know that when I get on a plane to come home, I'll look back and hope I gave it everything in me so I'm committing to do so!

I always want to share a million other things in these emails but I also want to talk to my family/friends for as long as I can so I love you all and hope you have an amazing last few weeks of summer!!