Come what may and LOVE IT!

Wow!  I just loved Riah's email this week:)  I have no words to describe how awesome it is to get emails like this:)

"Hey all!!

This past week has been great, I am loving the mission, it really is an amazing place to be :) This week I have really been able to reflect everything I have learned so far in the mission. I have been able to look back and see how much I have grown and changed as a missionary, and as a person in general.

This morning as I was reflecting I jotted down a few things to the question "If you had a few things to pick that you have learned the most on your mission so far, what would you say?" 

-The first thing is that the Atonement is REAL. It is up to US to accept it. I have also seen the true power of the adversary on my mission, and felt the frustration of agency and when people choose to give it up for the things of the world. However I have also seen, on the contrary, how the gift of free agency (the freedom to make our own choices) that God has given us is SUCH a marvelous thing. I have seen and FELT the power of the atonement and Christ's suffering for us and come to understand it better. I will NEVER fully comprehend it, but I sure can use and accept it because I have faith in it, and I KNOW it works!!

-Following and Recognizing the Spirit: I have come to my senses. I have been able to point things out that I feel and just sit back for a second to think and pay attention to how I feel when the spirit is working through me, and the things I can do in order to maintain it and keep that feeling with me. 

-And lastly to live IN the world but not OF it. At first we think of missionaries as being in this little bubble, and not knowing about anything that is going on in the world/doing worldly things, but just Focusing on the Lord--guess what? It's better that way! I have come to realize the things of the world DO NOT MATTER, and as long as we focus on the Lord and His work we will be protected from the overpowering influence of those things. The Lord is the one who helps us shut out the world and avoid temptation. He will keep us safe and guarded from the dangerous things around us as we stay away from them. I have learned that the way I conduct myself and the things I do help qualify or disqualify me for the companionship of the Spirit, and that as I try and maintain the standards and guidelines that I have so carefully been able to magnify on my mission through the rest of my life, that my future will be a place of refuge and peace and I WILL BE QUALIFIED.

I CANNOT BEGIN to even EXPLAIN enough of how much I love this gospel!! It's like a fire burning within me that just keeps growing and growing and can NEVER be put out!! I am SO grateful for the opportunity I have to spread the flame, and to help others catch that fire and gain a testimony of their own of the truthfulness and divinity of this gospel. I am SO grateful for those moments, when I am able to pour out the things I know to those around me, and to just see a change in their eyes the moment they begin to realize that the things I am telling them are true, and that through the power of the spirit that desire to know grows, and the thirst for more knowledge begins to grow stronger and stronger as they accept what God would truly have them know and come to understand. 

#feedtheflame

Thank you everyone, I really do have some AMAZING family and friends :) I love you all and wish you the best this week as you all continue to remember that you are sons and daughters of GOD, and that He cares for you and loves EACH of you individually!! I love each and every one of you individually!! 

Until next week!

Hermana Riddle :)

PS My compa Hermana Moleli hit her 16 months this past week so we celebrated with the one and only Cafe Rio's Tres leches!! Mm. ;)"

Also, this week on P-day Mariah was able to go to lunch with a long time friend of mine and his family.  Chad, Shondell and their family had a vacation planned in DC and Mariah was able to get permission for her and the other 3 Hermanas in her district to go to lunch with them.  I was able to send a suitcase full of stuff for her and she exchanged the things in the suitcase and sent stuff back to us that she doesn't need to keep there on her mission.  It was awesome to get the suitcase and just feel like a part of Riah came home:) I am so grateful for them and the kindness that they showed to those 4 Hermanas, 

Here is a little of what Riah shared with me about their lunch.

"So, about the lunch with Chad and his family. It was AWESOME :) We went to Texas Roadhouse, as you probably know and have already discussed with Chad haha. Sooo great, they are such a neat family, I LOVE them....

....hahaha it was a good time, we were able to talk a lot! There should be some pics on the cloud! It was hard to say bye cuz it felt like I had a little piece of home with me for a few moments. What a tender mercy of the Lord :)"

While Chad was there at lunch with them he sent us the pics and video below.  They were fed well as you will see. We were also able to get a couple of messages and a pic to Riah while they were there with them. She shared a bunch more about the lunch but for times sake I'll keep it short.  Such a fun memorable time!  Check out the pics and video!

            

                                                                                     

 

It has been super hot and humid in DC lately.  Here is what Mariah has to say about the weather there.. "I love rain!! Humidity.. eh, not so much.. ;) Chad's fam went to Arlington earlier today before meeting up with us and said that it feels SO much hotter here than Utah cuz of the humidity.. they were like, "I dunno HOW you do it!!?" There have been days when I have looked at the weather and the humidity has been 85% or more! Something that takes some getting used to!

Here are a few more pics that came in this week..

Hermana Riddle is HALFWAY!! 9 months down, 9 to go!

Hermana Riddle reached 9 months in the mission this past week!  Hard to believe that she is already halfway!  Time is just flying by! I know she will be home before we know it.  As of now her release date is April 15. 2016.  So, she'll be out a little longer than 18 months but..as of yesterday she only has 9 months left! EXCITING!!  Here is a pic of her "FELIZ 9 MESES"

This is her group email for the week...

"The mission is going by so fast, it's scary. 

This past week really was awesome. I just wanted to share a "quick" story, ok, let's see if I can do this.. So the other day we went on splits and I was with my old companion, Hermana Mensinger, again for the night, and we contacted LOADS of people. We found a man named Cesar who started to ask us A LOT of questions and was very curious and interested in what we had to say. He said he has talked with missionaries before here and there on the streets but has never understood what they were saying because he couldn't understand English. We were able to have a nice long conversation with him, and EVERYTHING he said highlighted some point or other of the gospel. We spoke to him about the Book of Mormon and gave him one and bore strong testimony, and it was SO powerful. But the part that got me most was one of the questions he asked:  "Are you happy?" he said. "like truly, truly happy?" We told him "Yes we are." He said, "even with all the confusion and chaos that is going on in the world right now, you are happy?" We told him "Yes, why? Are you happy?" He told us "honestly, no." And with true concern in his eyes he asked "How do you do it?" We told him that with everything that is happening in the world, that we can still have hope and put our faith in God. To trust Him and His plan for us. We told him that having a pure understanding the gospel in our lives is something that has helped us keep going, and to keep moving forward in this life. 

He then began to tell us that he had a great deal of knowledge about the Bible, and no matter how much he reads it that he feels like there is something else--something missing from his life, and he had been praying and was looking for just something more. Something to complete that empty space. After he told us this I looked him straight in the eyes and said, "Sabe qué? Yo puedo decirle que el pedazo que usted siente que está faltando en su vida está en sus manos." (He was holding the Book of Mormon we had given him) There was a short pause and he just responded back- "Sí. Yo lo sé." (Whoops, what I said to him was "You know what? I can tell you that the piece you feel is missing in your life, is in your hands." He responded with a short but firm answer. "Yes, I know it.") And there was just a feeling of power and warmth that just entered SO strongly into the conversation, NO ONE could deny it. The Book of Mormon IS the word of God, and it is SO crucial that we read it and abide to its teachings every day of our lives, that we don't waste one moment! This life is a testing period, a VERY short period of time we have given to us to prove ourselves to God and show Him we are willing to align our will with His.

I am so grateful for experiences like this on my mission. The opportunity I have to share this gospel and help them feel of God's love for them, He really does answer prayers and he really cares about each and every one of us individually. Do we love Him back? God loves each of us so much and is so willing to bless us if we will just do what is required of us. From the famous scripture in the Bible in John 14:15 we learn simply but clearly what we must do if we truly love God, "If ye love me, keep my commandments."  I have learned a great deal on my mission where true happiness comes from. God's commandments are not there to restrain us, they are there to open the door to a higher level of happiness that we could never experience in any other way but keeping His commandments. Not a temporary happiness that comes and goes, but an eternal happiness, a happiness that lasts. I love this gospel and have been able to gain more of an eternal perspective here than anywhere else in my life. I have been able to see what brings true freedom and true happiness, as we confide in our Savior, Jesus Christ, and follow his example and his teachings. 

I love you all, and I hope that you will all continue to LIVE life and to strive to be better every day! Each of you are so unique, and I am so grateful to know all of you and for the ways you have each individually touched my life. 

Until next week, 

Hermana Riddle :)

Oh and HEY HEY you bet we didn't forget!! Free 7-11 on 7/11!! Good times :)"

Cute 7-11 pics and more:)

Here is a little more info that she gave to me in an email..

"Things are coming along well with our investigators, we teach lots of lessons the hardest thing is getting them to come to church. Either they say they will come and don't show up or just kind of give us an "ok, maybe" or "Yes, yes! I will try to make it!" Or my favorite.. "Sii sii vamos a la igelsia, primero Dios. Primero Dios que Si" AHHH it is SO. Frustrating!! We are still working super hard and continuing to see miracles and find people, the guy I mentioned in my group email lives in Arlington though, he just happened to be visiting and was standing outside when we walked up to him.. So we will have to transfer his info to the Bellavista ward in McLean. :/ So sad, he is AWESOME. So prepared!! The area compared to my last? Well, they are completely different but I really do love it here in Sudley!! I would say that in Springlake there is more love and connection/ family feeling between the members, and I mean we are close with a lot of the members here its just they aren't close with each other really. But we are trying to fix that by trying to start some activities going on!! But then I feel like I have found a lot more prepared people out here as investigators than I did in Springlake. Satan's power really is SO REAL though, he works SO HARD once he knows that you have found a prepared person, and that you know that person is prepared. It is NUTS. Plus I have heard from various people that your 9-11 months on the mission (well, as a sister) is the hardest/roughest point usually. So, I'm prepared. I'm gonna try and make that not happen though.. ha :) So far things have been GREAT since I hit 9 months!!"

A few more pics that came in this week.  Riah got to go on splits with Hermana Mensinger who was her last companion. They were excited to be able to be together again. ENJOY!

 

  

 

Happy 4th of July from DC!

This last week was extremely crazy for all of us. Not much information this week as Riah had a zone activity that took up a lot of her P-day so she didn't have as much time to write.  We did get a bunch of pictures and videos though so I will post those.  Looks like she has had an eventful week.  Here is her group email..

"Hello all!!

So not much time today, but this week was great! We got a new mission president, President David Huntsman, and he is awesome!! He has 8 kids, such a cute family! The two oldest go to the U so for those of you who are out there if you see them say hi!! ;) 

This week went by super fast!! I'm so grateful for every opportunity I am given to bear testimony and talk about the gospel every day to God's children! I am grateful for the opportunity I am given to  be able to "declare repentance unto this people" and to really help them know and access the atonement of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and to be forgiven for the things they have done. There is a quote from President Spencer W Kimball that I just love, that "…man has unlimited potential for progress and attainment." We all have the opportunity to become better every day! We can never hit a standstill, change is constant, and it is important we are changing in a way that we are progressing and trying to be better every single day. 

President Kimball also states that "without God, repentance would have little meaning, and forgiveness would be both unnecessary and unreal." If we didn't have God, apology would mean nothing. We wouldn't even have the INCLINATION to apologize if there wasn't such thing as God--there is a deeper purpose behind being sorry for something, rather than just saying you are sorry. For if there was no God, there would be no repentance, and if there were no repentance, there would be no forgiveness, and without these two things in life we would have no purpose in being here!! 

We are here to learn and progress, and to "become like Christ." For we read in the scriptures- "what manner of men ought ye to be? Verily I say unto you, even as I am." (3 Nephi 27:27) Let us all try a little to become more like Christ, and seek out God's will in our own lives as we strive to be perfected in him and be truly repentant for the things we may have done wrong or the mistakes we have made. 

I am so grateful for this gospel and this grand gift I have been given to be able to access the atonement and to feel its healing and cleansing effects in my life, and to share its goodness with the people here in DC!!

I love you all, and hope you all had a fun and safe 4th of July!! I know I did! :) Until next week! 

Hermana Riddle :)"

On Sunday July 5th as we were sending our emails to Riah for the week we found out that my Grandma passed away.  We had been there with her the whole day and she passed away about and hour and a half after we left. Of course we shared the news with Riah and this is what she had to say to both Jared and I about it...

"That is so sad to hear about grandma, but it really does give me comfort in knowing that I have come to better understand the Plan of Salvation on my mission. I know I will NEVER come to understand every single aspect and deep doctrine of it, because it is such a wondrous and marvelous plan, but I have confidence and faith in God, and I know that His plan is perfect, whether we understand it or not. We just need to accept it! And as we accept the teachings and follow them and do our best, more knowledge will be unfolded unto us!"

"I'm so sorry to hear about grandma.. That is so sad :( I know that she is in a better place though, and that all will be well with the knowledge we have!" 

I too am so grateful, especially this week, that we have the knowledge that we do of the Plan of Salvation.  How grateful I am for the knowledge that families are forever! What a blessing it is to have Riah out on her mission sharing that very message with people:)

Here are some pics that Mariah took this past week.

I guess Riah wanted to show us that she can still do this! Yay!

Pics from a dinner that they had with all 4 Hermanas in their district. (Hermanas Moleli, Mugleston, Mensinger and Riddle:) Look at how carefully the food was put on their plates.  The rice looks like a pyramid!

           

Pics and videos from the 4th of July!! Don't mind the sillyness and the "Miranda sings" voice.  As you can see Mariah still has her fun-loving sense of humor.  I just love that girl.