July 17, 2019

Hi everyone! This was such a great week! We have still been doing a lot of bus contacting and it is starting to pay off! We had several first lessons this week with some super cute potentials! Also, there was a missionary that just came home from Chile who called us and asked if she could come finding with us before she went and got released. We were like- uh yeah!! She was so stellar! She got us 5 new potentials! The missionary fire is such a real thing. We had a lesson with one of the girls she contacted yesterday and she brought one of her friends who was interested too. Keira and Laila. They were young but I was seriously so impressed with their desire to learn more about God. She told us that when she was approached by sister Tustian on the street she felt like it was a sign from God because she has been feeling like she needs to strengthen her relationship with God. It really felt like people to teach have just been coming out of the woodwork! I love this work. I know that Heavenly Father has people prepared to receive this gospel and he is preparing them to be placed in our path. He does his work in so many diverse ways, it boggles my mind! Today is sister Johnson's last day in the mission field. Tomorrow she takes the bus to Montreal and then the next day she will be on a plane home. It is crazy! Being companions with her has been one of the biggest blessings. It has been so cool and eye opening to see what it is like at the final few weeks of the mission. She is what I hope I can be by the end of mine. She was bold and loving and the most excellent teacher! She knows her purpose clearly and is courageous in standing for truth. She has taught me SO much and I am going to miss her dearly! But she is an Aggie like me so it for sure won't be the last time that I will see her! I feel a sense of urgency to make these last 6 months of my mission count. I want to be all in, completely dedicated and 100% converted. I know my weaknesses and my struggles but I also know that Christ's grace is sufficient to cover those. I can overcome those things, and I will! But until then, I have strengths too that the Lord can draw from to help others. I really do know that the Lord needs each of us in this great work. There are certain people that need the testimonies and strengths of other certain people. That being said, by choosing not to take part in this great work, we are only hindering ourselves. He can do this work with or without us, and he will. But he has given us these opportunities to serve (in whatever capacity, missions, callings etc.) to helps US become. I hope that by the time I get to sister Johnson's point I will have truly become all that the Lord knew I could be. I know for sure that the power God has to help us is real and it is immense. The amount of that power that we will be able to receive from him will depend entirely on us. How much faith we have in him, how obedient we are, and how much our desires and will align with his will all determine just how much strength we will receive. It isn't a matter of how much power he has, because that is infinite. It is a matter of how much power we will allow him to give to us. I know my Savior lives. It is an honor to be his hands. I know that Heavenly Father is acutely aware of us and the people around us. The strangers on the bus are not strangers to him. They are his children and he aches to have them home. How grateful I am to be a gatherer in Israel. I love this work and I love this gospel. It is true. I know it's true. I hope that you are all happy and healthy and well! Thanks for you messages of encouragement. They mean the world to me! Much love, sister Bates