Dig, Prune, Nourish 11/3/14

 This week we worked super hard because of our Dig, Prune, Nourish thing. We were super exhausted every single night and made some great progress with a few of our investigators but on Sunday no one showed up... I'll admit I was disappointing and felt like Heavenly Father was letting me down but then I realized I was forcing my wish and my will when I should be accepting His. It was still pretty tough though and I am starting to think I will have some serious trust issues when I get home but it is another week and time to press the reset button "push".

The Elders who cover 3rd ward had a baptism last Saturday of a woman who is a caterer and sometimes gives us some of her left overs. We took one of our investigators to it and I could tell that she felt the spirit really strongly. I almost cried because it was so intense. We walked her home and invited her to pray to know if Heavenly Father wanted her to follow the example of Jesus Christ and be baptized. On Sunday we went to pick her up for church but she would hardly look us in the eye and after trying for 20 minutes to get her to talk to us she said she didn't want to go to church. It was heart breaking and I was kind of numb for most of church. They asked me to lead the music in sacrament meeting and I started singing after the intro but I couldn't hear anyone so I sang louder and then I realized that NO ONE was singing. I looked up and people were looking at me funny and my companion was laughing. I looked back at Sister Adams who was playing the piano and she said "are you ready?" I didn't know that they usually played the whole first verse as an additional intro so I got a surprise solo. The whole branch already thinks I'm "special" because of my diet ... but it made my companion smile so that was probably the best part of the day.

Today we are going to go spend some time in Pleasanton. It is a super cute town next to Livermore. It is a bit more ritzy but we have picked up a few people to work with last week so we will be spending more time there. Their downtown is ADORABLE and if I wasn't doing the budget challenge this month I might try and buy some of their adorable scarfs and things. There is a store called Therapy we pass by on the way to dinner on Saturdays that has a pig's head and I really want to check it out.

This week I'd like to share a quote by Richard G. Scott. I love this quote because I feel like it reflects the lesson Heavenly Father wanted me to learn this last week. I became so preoccupied with the numbers and the lessons and the contacts that I wrote my own agenda and did not allow room for the spirit to work. It is at times hard to be able to distinguish between our own thoughts and the whispering of the spirit but I also know that  Heavenly Father won't let his children suffer because of my hard hardheadedness and stubbornness. I know that as we soften our hearts and allow the Holy Ghost to dwell with us, he will direct and guide us through the tough times and decisions.

“...as you consistently strive to recognize and follow

feelings prompted by the Spirit, your confidence in the

direction you receive from the Holy Ghost will become

stronger... Spirituality yields two fruits. The first is

inspiration to know what to do, the second is power,

or the capacity to do it. Have patience as you are

perfecting your ability to be led by the Spirit. By

careful practice..and by being sensitive to the feelings

that come, you will gain spiritual guidance”

I know that as we soften our hearts and allow the Holy Ghost to dwell with us, he will direct and guide us through the tough times and decisions.

I know that Jesus Christ lives and that He is at the head of this church.

Love you all,

Hermana Quintana