One of those weeks where everything turned upside down

Hello everyone!! I hope you are doing fabulous. 

My week was great despite a lot of things that could have made it seem pretty terrible. It was one of those weeks where literally everything turned upside down for our people. We lost pretty much our entire teaching pool. But I felt the spirit a lot this week and still had a great time serving with Sister White!

G was doing well until he went home and spoke to his preacher.... as usual, it didn't end well in our case. He decided that he's comfortable with his current faith. I am hopeful he will meet with missionaries again one day. He said that he had a wonderful experience and that hes grateful for what he was able to learn. :) D's baptism was postponed as well. Her situation is complicated, but she will be getting baptized eventually! 



Heavenly Father still blessed us! He never turns away!! Even when things don't go as expected, he's still there. His plan is perfect and we still saw miracles and blessings. We felt a lot of joy as we pushed forward! 



We took the sisters on exchanges this week!! Since we are on campus, we have freedom as to how we choose to handle the exchange. I prayerfully decided that I needed to be up in Toledo with Sister Brown. Sister White and Sister Rhoades worked in Bowling Green. It was a great exchange! Sister Brown's grandpa passed away just a few days prior to the exchange. I was able to  relate to her as I talked about the experience I had losing Grandma and Grandpa. And then Uncle George just a few weeks ago. Death is never fun, but we are grateful for the knowledge of the plan of salvation. It brings peace like none else during times like that. We worked very hard all day and saw lots of cool miracles in their area. I love being anSister Training Leader. I've learned so much from the sisters I serve!!  



We also had Mission Leadership Conference. The zone leaders gave us a ride... It was nice not having to drive haha! It was a wonderful meeting. We spoke a lot about what it means to strengthen the stake of Zion. We are changing our mindset and the way we find people to teach. It's exciting!! The missionary department has bumped up our service hours from 5 a week to 10 per week! The mission purchased rakes and shovels and we are going to do lots of service. I'm excited to see the miracles that will come. 



We were really blessed last night. We had a super busy day because it was stake conference. We ended up only having an hour and a half for finding in the evening. We went to campus and the second person we spoke to said yes! Her name is E and she is currently looking for a church to call home. We are teaching her this week and I've got a lot of hope in her! 



On Monday evening, President called and asked me to lead a 30 minute training/discussion. (Heavenly Father keeps making me teach missionaries hahaha). The topic was "working with members". It caused me to reflect a lot on member missionary work and the importance of it. I feel such an urgency to help the members understand how important their role in missionary work is. There are only 70,000 missionaries and there are over 16 million members. Israel will not be gathered without your help.  One of the best examples of a member missionary comes from the Book of Mormon. Her name is Abish. In Alma chapter 19 we can read about her story. She comes into play after King Lamoni, His wife, and Ammon fall into their spiritual comas. Abish had been converted for many years and  witnessed the whole event. She took it as the perfect opportunity to go and share the gospel and she did not delay or procrastinate. In verse 17 we read that she "ran from house to house, making it known unto the people". She is such a wonderful example!! She put her faith over her fear. Her simple act of inviting others to "come and see" lead to the conversion of  many people. 

Think of the impact you can have!! Each member of the church has a personalized testimony and a personalized relationship with Heavenly Father. You have something to give that others cannot. Somebody out there needs to hear and see your testimony. Your words might be the only thing that allows for them to truly feel the spirit in the way they need. I would invite you to watch the "come see, come help, come stay" videos as a family. Prayerfully decide what you can do to be better. I promise that as you do, the spirit will speak to your heart and mind. Pray for the courage to follow promptings and you will be so very blessed!! 


I will leave you with one last little quote. It comes from out of Preach My Gospel and was said by President George Albert Smith. He wrote: "We will attain our exaltation in the Celestial Kingdom only on the condition that we share with our Father's other children the blessings of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and observe the commandments that will enrich our lives here and hereafter." 



There is nothing better than sharing the gospel. I am incredibly grateful for the last 13 months.



Have an amazing week! 

I love you all! 



Sister Sedlacek