HELLO FAM. and happy birthday Marissa!!! woot woot. your a
teenager now, everyone watch out! :) haha but lots has happened and I didn't
get to email a big email last week so I will do my best to catch yall up... so
excuse my fast sloppy typing....
So this past week or so a lot has happened with Sharen. Man.
Where do I start..... So Sharen was having some trouble accepting the Book of
Mormon and the history of it. As we continued to come back and teach her, she
told us that she was starting to understand and she as reading and calling us
with questions about her reading and she told us that she knew it was true! and
then she accepted the invitation to be baptized! It was a miracle! She had gone
without alcohol for 4 days and she was doing great! And so we saw her last
tuesday and we were planning on seeing her sunday morning and driving with her
to church. And then on sunday morning about 4 am, I woke up to her calling us
but I didn't answer it. And then she texted saying that she couldn't make it to
church that day. Sister Enero was up by then and so I told her and we were
pretty bummed because she has done this for weeks. But I just had the feeling
not to give up on her. Then as I tried to go back to sleep, the phone kept
vibrating, and so I checked it and she texted a few more times saying that she
called an ambulance to take her to the mental health hospital and that she was
feeling suicidal. It really scared me and we were both fully awake by then. She
told us that in the past she had tried to commit suicide a few times and so we
went into the kitchen and tried to call her immediately but she didn't answer.
And so we texted her but all she said back was sorry. My heart just broke for
her. I just love her sooo much and I just want her to feel how much God loves
her! and So we immediately knelt down on the kitchen floor and prayed. And we
both knew that it was out of our hands and that their was nothing we could
really do. And as we prayed I felt a peace come over me and I knew that it
would be ok. We haven't heard anything from her since and we are pretty sure
that they don't have phone access in the mental health hospital. But please
pray for her!!!
But besides that sad news, there was something awesome that
happened this week! So you know how I cover cairns as part of our region, well
we call the sisters every week and on sunday I found out that Larina, a little
girl I had taught got baptized! When I first started to visit them, her mom
didn't want us to come over, but she softened over time and started letting us
teach Larina so she could be baptized. So her mom had been excommunicated
before she was born and her dad isn't a member, but her grandparents
are active and took them to church. But the best news besides her getting
baptized was that her mom said the prayer at her baptism and her dad bore his
testimony and is starting the lessons this week!!!! miracle!!!! I was sooo
happy when I found that out!!! Even though things may not be happening as much
in the area I am serving in, it sure is a blessings to be able to see and
witness miracles happening around us!
Also funny story, so we didn't email yesterday because it
was Anzac day (like memorial day) and so in church we sand the Australia
national anthem, and part of me just wanted to start singing the star spangled
banner but I refrained and tried not to look too much like a foreigner singing
their national anthem. :) haha #proudtobeanamerican and speaking of that... one
thing that I just haven't really understood is why people hate America.. like
my companion and sharen and others I have talked to have had the question of
why would the church be restored in America?! my response is always... uhhhh
because America is the best! duh. haha jokes, but yeah.. thats life her in
'stralia.
But I am looking forward to skyping you in a couple of
weeks!!!! and I just want to thank you for your prayers and your love. And also
I want to thank grandma and grandpa Anderson for their emails and grandma and
grandpa Alldredge for their sweet letter, and jay and Nicole for sending
Aisley's cute wedding announcement, and Heidi and Shane for their Christmas
card, it was really cute and man, those kids are getting big!! and thanks Soph
for your letter. :)
Sister Alldredge
