Redemption Story

Hey Guys! I have had a couple of things happen this week, but most of this email is going to be focused on something I have learned about the atonement and turning our will to God and less about the everyday missionary work because I really feel that this message is important for you guys to hear. So here are the small update I had this week before my message:

1. Madain came back to church and got a priesthood blessing! He had been MIA for 5 Sundays 

2. I met David Archuletta's 3rd cousin

3. Marta gave us a heated conversation about saying she doesn't need to be baptized in our church becaise she is baptized in the catholic church (but we hugged it out in the end)

4. We are supposed to invite 1 person to be baptized every week and I'm so so scared because we have asked 4 already and every single one of them got scared off and has ghosted us 

5. We said goodbye to Hermana Brown. She was the one that followed me and message me immediately after I got my mission call and she is the epitome of charity 

Ok here is the big message (if you are a patient reader) 

I have loved reading about people and seeing others have their own redemption story: those that were lost and fallen away and through a miraculous event they completely turn around and are spiritual giants/righteous people. I also include people that have healed inside as a redemption story too. Some examples like Paul, The prodigal son, Alma the Younger, and friends that I know too. I loved seeing their stories because in reality, I desperately wanted a redemption story too. How do you do it? How do you overcome your struggles? Well, you can't do it alone. You have to use the Atonement of Jesus Christ. 

First thing, know that "he has overcome it all! With arms outstretched the Savior offers a gift of healing to you. With courage, patience, and faithful focus on him, before too long you can come to fullly accept his gift. You can let go of your pain and leave it at his feet." Lay it at his feet. This also means you have to drop your "swords of rebellion", or things that you were doing that were keeping you from accessing the full power of the atonement. For example, right now I am working on praying for my enemies and asking heavenly father to help forgive and take away my pain from the past. That one is big, others can be small. 

- speaking of swords of rebellion, we had a great mission zoom where we focused on a talk that mentions a lot of these things from above. A talk was given about God has a story he wants to write for us. We may be a bit of a bent pencil and have a couple of holes in us, but the story that he is willing to write for us has tales of beautiful struggles and us overcoming the trials we face in this life. The ending of the story is one with everlasting Joy and Happiness that if we choose not to follow, we cannot have the full spectrum of it. We have the ability to choose to recieve all of these blessings, but we have to be faithful in keeping the commandments and following him in all of our trials. We have to get rid of the splinters in our pencil in order for him to use us, meaning we need to drop our swords of rebellion. Like Nephi, I hope you exclaim as he did: "Awake, my soul! No longer droop in sin. Rejoice, O my heart, and give place no more for the enemy of my soul." 2 Nephi 4:27

Thanks to the grace of God, many parts of my blessing make sense to me now and I know how important it is to choose God and let him write my story, and not choose the one that is most comfortable. I hope that as you ask God what your swords of rebellion are those can be revealed to you and you can be able to access the atoning power of Jesus Christ when burying them. 

These talks/music/scriptures have showed me how I can have my own redemption story. I hope you get to read them! 

Inviting Christ to Author your story (October 2021 General Conference)

He is risen with Healingn in his wings (April 2022 general conference) 

Hillary Scott- beautiful messes

2nd Nephi 4:27-28 

I hope you guys have an awesome week! If any of you are going back to school or you are sending your kids to school, good luck!

Hermana Vestel 

I am thinking about sending pictures through Google photos so you can see how crazy my mission is rather than trying to imagine it all an email. If anyone would like to be a part of that shared Google photo drive just email me back or send me a message in messenger! But I will send some photos here in my email <3