Canada Week 34: Miracles upon Miracles!

Hello friends and family!  I hope everyone's week was splendid and fun!  I hope you laughed and made memories and if not, maybe you learned something :)  Also....ITS MAY!  How crazy is that?!  April went so fast - I can't believe it!  Anywho - it was another great week in the life of Sister Merrill, full of memories, laughter, lessons, service and food!

My companion and I got our videos posted with a little help from a friend.  I hope anyone who has seen them has enjoyed them - if you haven't seen them go give them a watch on Facebook.  They are on our missionary group page called 'Church of Jesus Christ in Northern Alberta' and also on my personal Facebook page. 

We were able to do more service for our members this week which is always a blessing!  We are so grateful we are able to that under the circumstances.  We had some yummy meals including mountain pies (basically sandwiches made over a fire in cast iron makers), moose burgers and pork chops!  It has been fun to sit 6 feet apart outside to eat supper and to get to know the members more and listen to the stories they have.   Another fun thing we got to do was join a seminary class.  We even got to teach part of the lesson and it was super fun.  We also got to play around on an outdoor laser tag course with some members in our ward that run it as their business.  This was also super fun!  I love the adventures I am having as a missionary and finding joy among the simple things. That is truly one of life's greatest treasures!

This past week we were able to reconnect with a couple people we have been trying to meet with for a while now.  We were able to teach a woman while sitting outside with some some members.  It was so cool.  We shared a beautiful poem with her about building our own ladders and doing all that we can to climb to Christ.  We taught her that when our part isn't enough the Lord is right there to help us the rest of the way.  He makes up the difference.  Everyday we are all adding to our ladders through prayer, service, scripture study and so much more!  It was wonderful to talk with her about how she has been building her ladder to get closer to Christ.  Another lesson we taught this week started out a little rocky, and he was also very distracted by a dog he was watching for his son.  When the dog finally calmed down, we were able to teach the lesson and it soon became one of the most wonderful teaching experiences I have had yet.  I had been praying for understanding about a few different things and for opportunity to help someone with what I had learned and then - boom - during that lesson with him the questions he asked went right along with what I had just been studying and praying about!  God is so good and works in such miraculous ways!  I am so beyond grateful for the love He has for me and for others and for the opportunity He gives to me to have these experiences.  We were also able to teach a few other lessons with more of our investigators and with some member families that I was able to meet. 

Amazing miracle of the week:  Back at the beginning of December a guy reached out to me on Facebook because he saw that I was a missionary.  He said that he was interested in learning more about the Church so I responded and we actually started teaching him,  We found the missionaries in his area and had a pass over lesson so the missionaries there could teach him in February.  I guess soon after that he became uninterested and they stopped teaching him.  Flash forward to now.  He reached out to me again on Facebook and said that he was ready to start learning again and asked what he should do.  We had a lesson with him and are now helping him start again.  We will also try to get in contact with the missionaries there again. 

I have been thinking a lot about God's individual, intricate and personal plan He has for each of us.  It has been really cool to connect the dots and witness what Heavenly Father has planned for me - to see it unfold before my eyes.  He truly loves us enough to have thought out these plans for each and every one of us.  It is amazing to look back on the blessings I have received and to witness promised blessings in them coming true in my life.   

One of the most amazing things about being a missionary - for me - is feeling the love God has for all of His children.  Feeling that love of others and being a conduit for the spirit to work in other's lives is one of my favorite aspects of this work.  I am so grateful God has allowed me to feel such a great love for the people I meet even when I don't know them at all.  It helps me grasp a portion of understanding the love our Heavenly Father has for each of us.  I love sharing this true message of love and serving others as a missionary here in Canada!

I had some wonderful studies this past week.  I rediscovered a scripture that I absolutely love!  It is found in 2 Nephi 31:3 --  "For my soul delighteth in plainness; for after this manner doth the Lord God work among the children of men.  For the Lord God giveth light unto the understanding; for he speaketh unto men according to their language, unto their understanding."  I love that it tells us that God speaks to us in our own language and in our own understanding.  Listening to the spirit is almost like learning a new language in a way.  We have to learn how God speaks to us individually and understand the way He connects to us the most.  I have loved discovering different ways He speaks to me and how I can help others come to a similar understanding of this in their own lives!  I listened to a cool talk by Hyrum Smith called, "The 2020 Dimensions of Christ."  He spoke about the dimensions of greatness and how to increase productivity in our lives.  One of my favorites was the dimension to be loving.  He explained that there are 3 motivational emotions - the first being FEAR.  We do things because we fear what would happen if we didn't.  It is the "I have to so this" mindset.  He named this the telestial level.  The second is DUTY - we do things out of duty because we are supposed to.  The "I ought to do this" mindset.  He named this the terrestrial level.  The third was LOVE - doing things, because you want to.  The "I want to so this" mindset.  He named this the celestial level!  This is the level we should all strive to be at.  He posed the question to ask yourself, "which of the 3 emotions is motivating me to do what I am doing?"  It was a really awesome new perspective on how to look at day to day things and how they affecting our decision making.  It is also a good 'check in' for our mentality and attitude.  I thought is was a really great talk!

To end I just want to share my simple testimony of the reality of God.  The reality of Jesus Christ.  I am so grateful for their presence in my life and for the love I feel from them immensely everyday.  I am grateful for my experiences of life - good and bad - because we learn so much through them.  They love us enough to "cut us down" and allow us to struggle.  They also allow for us to have indescribable joy!  That is my favorite part!  I love that Heavenly Father wants us to be happy!  Being happy is truly a beautiful gift!

I hope you all have an amazing week!  Find something to smile at everyday!
Love, Sister Merrill

SISTER MERRILL & SISTER POORE

Daily walks in beautiful Canada!

Serving with a Smile :)

Go away Corona!

Making mountain pies

YUM!

Braids = curly hair!

This girl from Logan, Utah has always and will always love sunsets!

Canada Week 33: The Book of Mormon is wonderful!

Hello hello friends and family!  I hope everyone's week was good and full of memories during this crazy time!

My week was full of service and lessons and it was oh so good!  The weather is finally getting to be so nice up here and we were able to be outside quite a bit!  It was lovely!
I was able to meet a couple more members of the ward here this week.  We also had a couple suppers around an outdoor fire - maintaining social distancing rules of course. We had hot dogs, or "smokies" as they say here, s'mores and ice-cream.  We listened to stories from the members and memories they had made and shared some good gospel discussions.  It was awesome!  With another couple we had supper with, we talked about counseling with God and how we have so many things to be grateful for!  God's hand is in everything - He truly is in the details of our everyday!  We just need to put forth effort and action on our part to look for His hand - it is always there.  This has been one of my favorite things to study and strengthen my perspective on.  I have kept a tender mercy journal on my mission and have written down how I have seen His hand in each day - it has been really amazing!  I know that prayers are answered and I know He is always listening and watching out for us.  He loves us more than we will ever comprehend in this life.

We were so blessed to serve members this week.  One family called and asked if we could help out in their yard and of course we said yes!  We were able to help rake leaves and pine needles and clean things around their property for a couple days.  It was so nice be outside and serve our members.  Another member invited us to come and help with his firewood stock.  We wheeled the wood by his shed to him and he would cut it up and then we stacked it back up.  It was super fun!  I  think wood is so pretty and smells so good!  While we were working he told us stories from gathering the wood to different hunting trips he had taken.  It was so cool to hear more about his life and get to know him more.  We were also able to go to another member's home to help cut up pig meat!  They had a pig just hanging in their garage and they showed us how to get meat from the different parts of the pig and cut it up.  We even ground some of the meat.  It was a pretty neat experience!

Another fun thing this week was a visit from two sister missionaries in our district.  They got permission to come and spend some time with us.  It was nice to have them here and have fun with them!  We shared some cool studies and one of the sisters taught my companion and I how to cross-stitch!  It was a lot of fun!

As for the title of this email - the Book of Mormon is so wonderful!  I studied it a lot this week and I was able to strengthen my testimony of it and the beautiful messages and blessings that it contains!  I have always loved that we refer to the Book of Mormon as the 'keystone of our religion' because it truly holds our religion together.  In Preach My Gospel it says that this book holds us together because it is a witness of Christ, it contains the fullness of Christ's doctrine and is the foundation of our testimonies!  How incredible is that?!  It truly testifies and is able to convince that Jesus is the Christ!  It also testifies of the Bible's truthfulness by clarifying and explaining Bible passages.  It can also answer any question that we may have - both temporal and spiritual.  I have tried it and can testify that it is true!  I am so grateful for the power that we can access as we prayerfully read the Book of Mormon.  I have read one chapter in the morning and before I go to bed every day for the past couple weeks and there has been such a difference in my days and in my attitude!  It is so incredible how wonderful it is!  One of my favorite verses I came across this past week was 2 Nephi 4:20-21:  [20] "My God hath been my support; he hath led me through mine afflictions in the wilderness; and he hath preserved me upon the waters of the great deep. [21] He hath filled me with his love, even unto the consuming of my flesh."  One part that particularly stuck out to me is, "He hath filled me with His love."  God has filled me with so much love time and time again.  Love for myself and love for those around me and I could not be more grateful for that!  His love is so powerful!  Another verse that stuck out to me is 2 Nephi 33:10, "And now, my beloved brethren, and also Jew, and all ye ends of the earth, hearken unto these words and believe in Christ; and if ye believe not in these words believe in Christ. And if ye shall believe in Christ ye will believe in these words, for they are the words of Christ, and He hath given them unto me; and they teach all men that they should do good."  What an incredible promise!  Even if you don't have a belief or testimony of the Book of Mormon, if you believe in Christ your belief in it's words can come!  I have seen it in my own life and I will forever cherish my testimony and the words shared in this wonderful book!

I just want to end with my simple testimony of the Book of Mormon and of God's hand in our lives.  I know God is there.  I know He loves me and is listening to me and each and everyone of us.  I know the Book of Mormon is the true word of God and that the promises and blessings found within it are true.  This book brings so much peace into my life and I will forever be grateful for it.


I love and miss you all and hope that everyone has a splendid week!  Keep the faith!  Keep smiling!  God never ceases to be good!  He is always there!

Love, Sister Merrill

The Book of Mormon is WONDERFUL!

Drawing and coloring this week :)

Sister Poore & Sister Merrill

Sister Merrill & Sister Brockett

Sisters Pitt, Poore, Merrill & Brockett

Sister Merrill is becoming quite the cook!

Making Chocolate Clouds!

Canada Week 32: Have you ever sung for your supper?

Hello friends and family!  I hope everyone had the most splendid week and was able to find fun things to do while stuck inside!  My week was an adventure, fun-filled week for my companion and I!  It consisted of a few lessons, Facebook posts and challenges, adventurous walks exploring our little town of Drayton Valley, social contact with our district, rearranging the apartment and lots of memory making fun and more!  It also consisted of answers to prayers, miracles and awesome studies!

As for the title of this email - this week we sang for a couple in our ward and in return they provided us with supper!  If was super fun and definitely not something you do or see everyday!  It really made for a fun memory and there was a special spirit there.

This past week I was able to meet a few more of the members in this ward as well as someone the sister missionaries were previously teaching.  We also were able to have a couple member family lessons over video chat.  I met the Phipps family and we played a game with them called "obedient or not."  We also taught a lesson on obedience and why it is important to keep the commandments of God.  The kids were so cute and knew exactly what was and wasn't obedient, and even recognized ways they could be obedient and how in doing so brings about rewards and blessings.  Then with the Nickles family we played "miracles pictionary."  My companion and I would draw miracles that Christ performed and they would guess them.  We would then share insights as to what we learned from that miracle and how if applies to our lives and helps us now.  Both of these family lessons were way fun and spiritual.  We are hoping to continue doing fun messages like this with more families.  We were also able to teach a lesson with a woman who had been previously taught.  We have been trying to get in contact and set up a time to meet with her for the last 3 weeks!  The first meeting we set up didn't happen, but this week we were able to work it out!  Yay for miracles!  God never ceases to be good!  We mostly got to know her and her background and then shared a few insights and just listened lovingly to her.  It was so cool to hear her story and get to know her.  She was super sweet.  We have a lesson set up with her this week and are super excited!

Another miracle from this past week was we received a message Friday night about district conference with our Mission President and our district for the next day!  So Saturday we were able to go into the city and have social contact with our district and president and his cute wife!  We received a new church training for missionaries about Facebook.  We learned different things we were going to be doing with Facebook that other missions have piloted for the last few months.  Missionaries are now each assigned to a Facebook page that has been created and with a designated group they will run it.  It was so amazing to witness how inspired the whole thing is and to see how it will go into effect in our mission now.  It really is such a cool time to be a missionary and begin paving the way for this new online form of missionary work.  The whole world is digital now and online learning has become a natural and normal thing.  With this we have the opportunity to reach hundreds, if not millions of people through Facebook and the internet!  It has been pretty cool to learn effective uses of this technology.  Not only will this bless out lives right now, but it will bless us in the future as well.  This will also bless members and their efforts in doing missionary work.

My companion and I found random adventures this week to keep ourselves sane.  We found lots of different routes to walk.  We even discovered a little trail though a bunch of trees - it was like a mini "city forest" and it was beautiful.  We also rearranged part of our apartment and planted some plants and drew faces on rocks.  We sing a lot and find fun inside and outside!  I was also challenged on Facebook to do some fun things so we created posts for those.  Overall, we made an effort everyday to laugh and smile.  I have thought a lot about the situation we are in right now and how hard it is being inside a lot.  This has all reminded me of the simple joys of life.  There truly is joy in the ordinary and even just choosing to smile can boost your mood.  We are so blessed with so many things!  We only need to look for the hand of the Lord in our lives everyday!  He is always there blessing us in ways we don't even see.  Sometimes due to the blindness of our eyes from our attitude towards different situations we get put in, it can get really stressful and discouraging at times.  I was reminded of a quote from Sister Hinckley that says, "The only way to get through life is to laugh your way through it.  You either have to laugh or cry.  I prefer to laugh.  Crying gives me a headache."  May we all decide to choose happy! ♡

My studies this week were full of amazing, wonderful, insights - here are a few of them.  Earlier this week I came across the scripture in Doctrine and Covenants 123:17, "Therefore, dearly believed brethren, let us cheerfully do all things that lie in our power and then may we stand still, with the utmost assurance, to see the salvation of God and for His arm to be revealed."  I love this scripture!  What a beautiful reminder to "cheerfully do all things that lie in our power." We need to choose to be happy and stay positive!  There are still miracles happening and God is still with us!  We just need to keep doing our best and God will do the rest!  Our choices and attitude are in our control.  People around us and situations don't control that - we merely allow for them to influence us.  I studied more on the topic of happiness and came across Psalms 144:15, "happy is that people, that is in such a case; yea, happy is that people, whose God is the Lord."  We have so many reasons to be happy - two of the biggest being God and Jesus Christ!  I have loved looking for the tender mercies in everyday.  God's hand is so prevalent in our lives.  He is always helping each of us along the way and cheering us on!  He just wants us to be happy, to involve Him, and turn to Him in all things!

I am so grateful for the opportunity I have right now to be a missionary during this unique time.  It is such a privilege and I can't wait to see what else the Lord has in store for me.  I am so grateful for the rock my Savior has become for me and for the constant guidance and direction from the spirit.  I am also grateful for the happiness and peace I feel from this true gospel!

I hope everyone is able to choose happy this week!  Choose to see the positive side in hard things.  Remember that God is allowing us to learn and grow through these hard times.  He wants us to turn to Him always - in trying times or not!  Also remember to smile and laugh at the small joyous moments God provides!  Love and miss you all!

Love♡Sister Merrill

Sister Poore & Sister Merrill

I LOVE to see the temple!

District Conference

Sister Merrill & Sister Costas

Sister Merrill's bulletin board