Merry Christmas!

 Hello Friends!

Merry Christmas from the Philippines! We sang Christmas songs in church this week. The Filipinos love Christmas and Christmas starts in September here with the “ber” months!

I hope you all had a great week!

This week, Sister Liper and I got to work to find God’s children and teach them the restored gospel.

Something I absolutely LOVE that I am learning from Sister Liper is the importance of the Restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The Restoration is where there was a time where the gospel was not on the earth, but because God loves us, He restored it through a prophet named Joseph Smith.

I already loved teaching the Restoration before, but Sister Liper has taught me how important it truly is. Even when we only have a little bit of time, she always teaches a short version of the Restoration. I have started doing it too, and I love the focus on Jesus Christ and the love of God. I love that I get to learn from my companion!

As we have been teaching in this way, we have seen so many miracles.

We have been able to find a lot of people to teach, and our lessons have been more meaningful. I feel the spirit testify to this message and it helps everything else make sense.

Another miracle that we saw this week was in teaching the Plan of Salvation. Or the plan that God has for each of His children.

On Thursday, we were looking for people to teach and we met a nanay. Her son had just died last month and she was worried about where he was. On Saturday we had the opportunity to teach her God’s plan for her son. As we were teaching, I felt prompted to share that my own grandma had lost two of her sons. As I shared this, Nanay looked up at me and asked me if my grandma was sad when her sons died and if she cried. I told her that of course my grandma was sad, but she found hope because of the Atonement of Jesus Christ and His plan. The spirit filled the lesson as I testified that she would be able to see her sons again.

I am so grateful that I was able to share God’s plan with this nanay and help her feel peace in the midst of her trial.

One more miracle, because I love miracles! On Sunday, we were waiting for church to start, and none of our friends were there yet. We had invited soooo many people throughout the week, but it seemed like no one was going to come. Finally, our friends started trickling in! Even people that seemed unsure whether or not they could make it, were able to come! It was so amazing to see them come to church and they had a great time! 

This week, Riodel passed his baptismal interview! Keep him in your prayers. He will be baptized on Saturday! I am so excited for him. 

I love being a missionary. There are so many wonderful miracles that I get to experience every day. God loves all of his children so much.

As I was studying this week, I studied one of my favorite chapters of scripture: Moses 1. 

In Moses 1, Moses sees the glory of God and God tells Moses of his own identity as a son of God. Right after that special experience, Satan comes and tempts Moses. He says that Moses is not enough and denies his divine identity. 

I love what Moses says in response:

“And it came to pass that Moses looked upon Satan and said: Who art thou? For behold, I am a son of God, in the similitude of his Only Begotten; and where is thy glory, that I should worship thee?”

He then calls on the Lord and asks for help and strength, and casts Satan out.

I love this. When we know who we are, Satan cannot have power. We are all sons and daughters of God. We are created in God’s image. There is power in knowing who we are and who created us. I know that God loves each of us. I also know that when we remember who we are and our value to God, the trials and challenges in life become easier to bear. 

I love you all! Thank you for your love and support! I hope you all have the best week! Always remember who you are!

The Church is true, God loves you,
Be happy, Be brave, Be smart,
Love,
Sister Miller