Wooaaaahhh! We're halfway there!

Hello, my lovely friends!

I am finally in SOLANO!

 

Also…I hit my halfway mark this week!!

 

AHH! It is absolutely beautiful here and a complete dream come true. This week has been a bit wild, a bit challenging, and a grand adventure!

 

We arrived in Solano on Monday. Because we are opening an area, we have a new apartment! That is a blessing and a curse. There are 4 of us sisters opening areas here in Solano. On Monday, we had to completely set up the apartment. By the time we had it set up, it was 6 pm, and it was time to get to work. We didn’t get much of a P-Day last week, but we did get to start exploring our area, which was fabulous!

 

When I first arrived in Solano, I thought that we would have some people in our teaching pool; however, because they were just splitting an existing area, it turns out that the Elders—who were previously assigned here—had spent almost no time in our new area…so there was absolutely no one in our teaching pool. Not a single person to teach. 

 

BUT…this was and is truly a miracle! Because we got to find, find, find! And it has been a lot of fun! Because we are both new to the area, we have gotten lost a lot, but we were able to use it as an opportunity to meet new people! And it truly has been amazing…

 

A couple of weeks ago, I told my last companion (Sister Nacar) that I just wanted to open an area. I thought it sounded like a grand adventure and I wanted the challenge. This truly does feel like a dream come true. My companion and I get the privilege to build an area from scratch! It is amazing! And I am so excited!

 

At the beginning of the week, we didn’t have our normal resources yet because the PMG app had not yet been set up. We were not even sure what area was ours and what area was the Elders. So, because we were not familiar with the area at all, we were using member tools to find some of the members. But here in the Philippines, addresses are not always accurate, and it can be really hard to find people if you don’t have someone with you who knows where the house is. Anyways, we knew absolutely no one, but we wanted to meet the Branch President. So, we followed the directions on member tools…but…as we were riding in the Tricey, it seemed to be really far—farther than our area should be. But, we didn’t know what area was ours and what area was not ours…

 

Anyways, when we arrived at the address in member tools, we were stopped outside of a fast-food restaurant. Definitely not the house of our Branch President…and not even our area! We hopped right back into the Tricey and headed back to the area we knew was ours. 

 

Later some members informed us that we had indeed gone waaayyy too far and had most definitely left our area. But it's all good, the members showed us to the house of our Branch President and it ended up great! We’ve had a good laugh or two as we have tried to discover our area and find the people we so desperately want to teach.

 

In this process, we have, of course, experienced lots of miracles! We were able to find over 50 people this week! Huge Miracle. And we were able to meet many members. I already love this area! My heart is full to think of the opportunities that surely await us. It was a week of getting to work, learning, getting lost, and having adventure after adventure!

 

For my spiritual thought this week, I want to share with you all part of one of my favorite talks. 

 

This week, I had a moment of self-doubt. I kind of wondered if I was enough. Everyone who transferred with me to Solano has been a missionary for a long time. All of them have been STL’s, they are great at teaching, and it was easy to compare myself to them and just feel a little out of place. However, I read this great talk by Sister Michelle D. Craig called “Divine Discontent”

 

In this talk, she talked about the difference between divine discontent and the devil’s discouragement. There is indeed a difference. Divine discontent drives us to be better. It is a place of growth and learning. The devil’s discouragement stops our progress, we feel too overwhelmed to continue. We feel discouraged and despair.

 

I think sometimes I catch myself dwelling in the realm of the devil’s discouragement. I get lost in my inadequacies. But I love what Sister Craig says:

 

“Have you ever felt your talents and gifts were too small for the task ahead? I have. But you and I can give what we have to Christ, and He will multiply our efforts. What you have to offer is more than enough—even with your human frailties and weaknesses—if you rely on the grace of God.”

 

The Savior does not want us to become complacent, but he also does not want us to be discouraged. He wants us to grow and become more THROUGH Him. If we rely on the grace of God, we will find true joy. 

 

I think about Moroni 10:32 (look it up…you’ll love it too). It says that God’s grace is sufficient as we come unto Him. I know that this is true. 

 

I love God. I love this, Church. I know that it is true, and I know that as we come unto Christ, we find true Joy!

 

I love you all! We are ready for another great week! Send prayers that we can find the people who are ready for the gospel!

 

The church is True, God loves you,

Be happy, Be brave, Be smart,

Love,

Sister Miller

Oh! and P.S. ... I hit my halfway mark on the mission this week. It's crazy to think I only have 9 months left in the Philippines. 

Here are some pictures with my new companion, Sister Arcayos. She is absolutely lovely. She is kind and generous. She is a hard worker and desires to work just as hard as I do. We are going to get along perfectly!