Hola Mi Hermanos

Felize cinco de Mayo!

First, I just want to give a shoutout to Brenna Miller for literally
being the only person that still writes me. She's the most faithful 7
year old I've ever met. Thank you Brenna, I love you:)

I'm excited to see y'all this week. I can't believe it's already this
time of year again. I feel like I was just counting the days to
Mothers Day 2013 and here we've come full circle once again. Time
flies when the summer heat kicks in.

This week we attacked the ward list and starting calling everyone we
didn't know (unknown less active people) and setting up appointments
with anyone we got ahold of. It was a dream week of appointments,
which led to other appointments and we were getting in with people
that haven't been to church since the 80s and having short, spiritual,
uplifting lessons with them, inviting them to act, and leaving on a
spiritual high. It was wonderful. And inspired by the spirit.

Miracle. Along with the members of our ward, We've been praying for
big active families to move in to build up the ward. This week we
found a less active lady who recently moved into the ward boundaries.
She has a desire to come back to church and bring her family. Her
husband is not yet a member and neither are her SEVEN children. Her
family alone would double the youth program in this ward. It was a
miracle. We're really excited about them.

This week I thought about how I'm still waiting for the day when
President Craven calls and asks me to be an Hermana. Each week that
goes by and the closer July gets, the more my faith in that dream
begins to dwindle. But I'm getting as close as I possibly can. We had
an appointment with a less active family from Mexico this week and
they invited us for dinner yesterday. Those kids were teaching me the
entire Spanish dictionary. I was going loco. I was so happy. It's my
calling in life to speak Spanish. I just know it. Haha :)

So Leah? Golden. She's on fire. Thank you for your prayers. She's
preparing for baptism on the 24th. She's really doing great. It's the
best teaching people that want to be taught, that want to be baptized,
and that want to progress. She posted on Facebook about setting a date
for baptism and when we saw it I wanted to cry I was so happy. We've
been working so hard for so long and finally, good things are
happening.

Last night, Elder Parker from Atlanta who is the area president came
and did a mission home fireside for investigators, returning members
and recent converts. It was THE BEST thing ever. The brethren in Salt
Lake refer to him as the preacher of the south and how perfectly he
fits that title would just amaze you. We took Richard and a few other
members who have been LA and a RC came too but we were sitting with
Richard (mind you he's of the Bahai faith) and the whole time he was
getting a kick out of Tony Parker. He loved it. And he left all fired
up and excited about the gospel.

Through work Richard knew Mark Benson (President Benson's son) years
and years ago and always asks us to "ask around" to see if anyone else
knows him so he can get back in touch with him. Anyway, right before
the meeting started, Richard got up from the pew where we were sitting
and shuffles (he's 84) up to the stand where Elder Parker, President
and Sister Craven, and President Baker, our stake President all were.
I just sat with wide eyes wondering what the heck he was doing. All
the missionaries around us were watching me and Sister Tanner
wondering what our investigator was doing up there. But the four of
them all stood in a circle together on the stand talking for a few
minutes and then Richard came back and sat down and in his over
zealous 84 year old booming voice said, "they know Mark!! He's still
alive! They're going to have him call me!" It was really funny. He was
like a giddy school boy all evening.
P.s. Mom, you'd be so proud of me here using all my musical abilities.
I participate in musical numbers all the time. Including the one at
yesterday's fireside. All these years of piano and choir tour are
payin off. :) haha

I appreciate all you do for me. I love you all and pray for you many
times a day. Your prayers are felt on this end. Thank you so much. I
love you to the moon and back!
Onward Christian soldiers.

Sister Webber

Transfer Week

Transfers are this week and thanks to many prayers, Sister Tanner and
I are staying in Reedy Creek together. It's a Christmas miracle. The
Elders in our ward are staying too. There's a 98 percent chance I'll
just stay in this area until the end. It's so crazy to think about.
Our district is getting destroyed, but it'll all be okay. We'll all be
together again soon enough.

This week started out good from the moment I sent out my last email. A
member took us bowling last preparation day and we bowled and bowled
with she and the Elders until the cows came home. It was the best. I
have developed an extreme love for the game of bowling as a
missionary. Be prepared family. We're going to be bowlers. :)

Last Monday, President called us during our bowling sesh and asked us
to drive out to an area and pick up a sister that was going home for
medical purposes. We had this poor sister for the evening before she
went home and we asked her a lot of questions in the short time we had
her. She's only been out about 7 months and when we asked her if she
was excited to see her family the next day, she firmly said, "no." I
was surprised by the immediate response and asked why. She said she
"didn't want to go home like this" I'm sure she meant because she was
sick and she was forced to leave early but I took it in a matter of
progression for missionaries all together. That in her mind, she
hadn't yet become what she knew she needed to before she left her
mission. Yes, this sister will come back and finish out her mission in
a few short months, and continue to progress and become but I
reflected on the changes I've made as a missionary and the spiritual
progression I've made throughout my life.
I read in Doctrine and Covenants 52 this week and in verse 2 it says,
"Saying: I, The Lord, will make known unto you what I will that ye
shall do from this time until the next conference..."
The Lord puts a time limit in this specific verse for these saints but
as I thought about this, i thought, what does The Lord want me to
accomplish and become before July? Until I finish school? Get married?
Until I have kids? Until I die? Until I return to live with Him again?
In verse 4 it says, "inasmuch as they are faithful unto me, it shall
be made known unto them what they shall do."
Faith brings the answer of what The Lord expects of us. As we increase
in our faith, which comes through consistent prayer, scripture study,
partaking of the sacrament, fasting, keeping the commandments, etc,
our will is aligned with His. Also through patriarchal blessings we
have our own personal liahona to guide us and direct us. To give us a
roadmap of the things we covenanted with God to do before we came to
this earth. We come to know and understand what He would have us do
and become "until the next conference." It shows us the value The Lord
places on setting goals. Today, tomorrow, and forever principle.
I've changed a lot in my time as a missionary. I think into a person
y'all might not recognize. And as scared as I was before my mission
that I was going to change drastically, I'm completely okay with the
fact that it happened and that I'm a completely different person. I
don't want to be the person I was before my mission.
Buckle up fam. Hah just kidding. I've learned that change is a good
thing. It means there's growth. So don't be alarmed when a completely
different human enters into your life. I still love cafe rio. I still
love my family. I just love, appreciate, and understand the gospel 30x
more than I ever did.
Well y'all are the best people I know. Thank you for being covenant
keepers that I can look to for a good example.
Sister Jameson goes home on Wednesday. Connect with her somehow. She's
the best. Have her over for dinner or something and she can tell you
all about NC and our crazy fun six months together.

Love you all. Have an incredible week. You're in my prayers always.
Love, Sister Webber


Pray for Reedy Creek. Lots and lots of prayers for the Reedy Creek Ward.
Thank you:) love you:)

Happy Easter

Mango, mango.
Mom, thank you for the package. I don't think anything on earth makes
me more excited than when I feel the love my family has for me. Thank
you so much. I wore that cute shirt for Easter Sunday. I'll send
pics:)

What a week. I don't even know where to begin.

Last week during one of our exchanges, a sister and I went to contact
a former investigator from our area book. We got there, prayed, got
out of the car and a young man was walking out of another apartment.
We introduced ourselves, asked him if he knew his neighbors, he didn't
and told us he just moved to Charlotte from New York, I asked him if
he'd found a church yet, he said no, we told him we were there to
invite him to church so he said, "tell me about it" so we taught him
the restoration, invited him to read and pray about the Book of Mormon
and come to church with us, he said he couldn't wait to do it, we
invited him to be baptized and he said yes with such excitement in his
eyes.
This week. Sister Tanner goes back over to his apartment while I was
in Kannapolis on exchange. His mom answers the door and says, "you're
Mormons. Come in." They went in, and she told them all about how her
sister was a convert to the church, married in the temple, lives in
South Jordan, with a son about to leave on a mission. Woah. These are
the kind of people we're looking for. Already attached to the church
in some way, whether they realize it or not. They are the elect. It
was wonderful. We're meeting with their family tonight. Pray for
Jerome and his fam.

Also, while on exchange in Kannapolis, we went to dinner at a members
house and this member had invited three of these sisters investigators
over for dinner too. On the way to dinner Sister Buckley was telling
me about how these investigators had been taught forever and were
having difficulty committing. We get there, the mom comes up and asks
if they could be baptized on the 26th. Um, yes. Yes you can. Miracle
city.

I don't know if y'all follow the weather much in Charlotte, but if you
do, you're aware that Friday and Saturday were a torrential downpour.
Saturday, naturally is car fast day so we were on our bikes. Let's
just say waterproof gear ain't all it's cracked up to be. It was
insane. We got to an appointment and our investigator looked at us and
said, "girls! What happened to you!" She ended up taking our jackets
and blow drying our skirts off.  We also had a voicemail from a member
in the ward that passed us on our bikes and said, "something is wrong
with you two." The Lord's servants never rest!! Haha

The Because of Him video was our greatest ally this week. Everyone
will listen "to an Easter message" which without a doubt would end
with them in tears, testifying of their love for the Savior. It was
the best. Perfect lead in to the Restoration of the Gospel of Jesus
Christ.

Yesterday in Gospel Principles the teacher went off on a tangent about
challenges and difficulties in life. One of the Elders talked about
how we wouldn't be able to continuously strengthen our faith and
testimony of Christ and His Atonement if we didn't face trials and
adversity. The teacher said, "Don't go through life seeking out the
easy path." It reminded me of President Eyrings talk, Mountains to
Climb and how praying for challenges brings us closer to Our Father in
Heaven. I've mustered the strength to do that as a missionary. The
Lord gives us those challenges, I testify to that. But he makes us
stronger, and able to bear those afflictions.
I don't want to easy path in life. The natural man in me wants to easy
path, the lazy path, and the path of least resistance. But none of
that will prepare me to live with God again. President Spencer W.
Kimball, said: "There are great challenges ahead of us, giant
opportunities to be met. I welcome that exciting prospect and feel to
say to the Lord, humbly, 'Give me this mountain,' give me these
challenges."

I know through the Gospel of Jesus Christ we can unlock the Redeeming
power of the Atonement. I love this gospel.

Love you all so much.

Sister Webber