Poco a poco‏

I am both amazed and intrigued by the power of God every single day.

This last week was so good. I can see God working, poco a poco, little by little, and it's incredible.

Milagro 1. So for the past month or two, we've been trying to find a lady named Shana. Turns out, both her address and her phone number were wrong, which means that we pretty much were at a dead end. It pains me to say that we decided to just to forget about trying to find her, only so we could move on and focus on others. Last week, we were at our bishop's house when our phone started to ring. I picked it up, leaving the room, and answered. It was Shana! She asked if we were missionaries and said that she needed us to come help her. We set up an appointment with her, and continued to pray for guidance and offer gratitude for this miracle. We found Shana! We ended up helping her clean her house and move some boxes, and then we were able to talk for awhile. She opened up to us, and we were able to share scriptures and our testimonies to help invite the Spirit into her home. We testified of the power of doing the little things, like praying and reading and going to church. Because those little things start to add up, and we start to find more and more strength. We promised her that if she came to church, she would feel God's love. And guess what? She came to church! We walked into the chapel and saw her sitting there, reading from her scriptures. This woman has been through the worst of the worst. She's been through some of the craziest things, and as I saw her sitting there, God's love for her just filled me up, and I knew that she was getting back on the right track. She was beaming! She looked so happy. It was amazing.

Milagro 2. About a month ago, we tried visiting a less active family in our ward. The only day that we could visit them was on Saturday, and we were always busy! But this last week, we had a lot of time in our schedule so we decided to go visit Susana. She let us in, and we talked about where she was from and about her family and work and whatnot. As she was talking, I was praying that we would be led by the spirit and be able to know what to share with her that would give her comfort and help her come back to church. I kept getting an impression that we should stay quiet and just listen. Turns out, Hermana Grubbs was getting the same impression. So we sat, often in silence, waiting for Susana. It was amazing because you could visibly see the spirit working on her. Her whole demeanor was changing. She opened up, told us her fears and worries and struggles. We were able to listen and discern, and then teach and testify, according to her own personal needs. With tears, she told us that she felt alone, and we instantly felt prompted to show her the Because He Lives video. As the video finished, she had more tears and told us that she wanted to return to church, but that she didn't know how she would be able to. The church was so far away, she often worked, and her husband didn't want to go. I promised her that God would provide a way and sure enough, He did. I was sitting in the chapel, and Hermana Grubbs was leading the music. Hermana Grubbs suddenly got so happy and mouthed to me, "tun around!" I turned around and she was there! With her two little boys! She looked so happy. I was so overwhelmed with the spirit, I started to cry and laugh, all at the same time! And I couldn't stop the whole meeting! In total, we had 4 families return to church today. It was amazing! I don't know how God did it, but it was incredible.

I am just so in awe of the power of God, of His infinite love. Every day I am discovering more and more layers and depths to who our Father is and what the Atonement of Jesus Christ is. The Atonement compensates for every imperfection, every weakness, every pain. Jesus Christ was chosen because He was perfect. He was the only one who could really suffer for all of our sins and pains because he was perfect. Somebody who is imperfect can't raise us to perfection. Every day I am learning more and more about how to turn to my Savior and about why I need to. My testimony is being strengthened and renewed daily. As I turn to my Savior, it's like I'm being embraced by loving, strong, and caring arms. To me, an embrace is like desiring to be one with someone. As I embrace my Savior, my Father, the gospel, I'm able to become one with them. Or at least try to be. All I know is that I have been stretched and changed in ways I couldn't have imagined before my mission, but that's because God knows me better. I have never been so aware of His infinite and perfect love before... I can feel it as I see Him changing people's lives, poco a poco. I can see it in the missionaries who are trying so hard to learn of and do His will. I can see it in my own family, as I remember and reflect on the goodness of God that has always existed in my life. God is everywhere. He is real, and He loves you. He is aware of you. Promise.

"Not one sparrow shall fall to the ground without your Father knowing... Fear not therefore, for ye are of more value than many sparrows." Matthew 10:29-31

Keep working hard. Keeping being great. Keep loving with all you've got. When you work hard and you dedicate your efforts to the Lord, He amplifies them.

I love you all so much! Thanks for being the best support.

xoxo

Hermana Brie Gould