From: Monica Gean Miller
Ciao Carissimi,
Well, thank you for your letters. I am grateful for the chance to hear from you all. Your words of encouragement mean more than you know. I'm so lucky to have the family that I do.
This week was great, we have made huge progress with the Gravina family. We have been able to go to Adelphia several times a week to see them, to help them stay on top of this. It has been a miracle to work with this family. We will be having their Baptism on November 28th. We are praying like crazy, that the father, Giacomo, will be able to overcome some of these vices that he has: Mainly gambling, smoking and drinking. It has been hard to work with this family so tightly, without thinking back to my own family situation. We are blessed to have our families. Unfortunately in this family they have not had the best examples to follow with their Dad, and the Mom (Grazia) tends to complain a TON about her husband, whether he is present or not. We have been trying to help them recognize the changes that WE have seen in them, since they have been coming to church, and repenting. The ward is awesome at reaching out to them when they make it to church. Of course no new member who gets baptised is going to understand and have a testimony of EVERYTHING, but they FEEL the love of the members. The members are all so excited because this will be the first baptism of a FAMILY that they have had in years! It was sweet when we did the Baptismal invite to Giacomo, we were at our Bishop's house. Giacomo was like pouring his heart out to us (one of the coolest experiences to sit there as a missionary, and take it all in, live in that moment as a missionary) how from the very first visit, he felt inside of him something tell him that this was the right path to take. He is really humbling himself, its pretty incredible. He HAS made some big mistakes, this is true, but it is the most beautiful thing in the world to see someone come to understand the Atonement of Jesus Christ. For someone to know that they can be forgiven of their sins, who has struggled for years, is a beautiful, beautiful thing. Please please pray that HE (Giacomo) will have the courage to go through with this Baptism. Sometimes he just feels like he's not ready, but we are never 100% ready to be perfect, but I can say that we can try with EVERYTHING we have to follow Jesus Christ.
This week I ate something called trippa. I thought it was some kind of sea food, because it looked like maybe octopus or something...I told them to tell me what it was AFTER I ate it, not before. I apparently ate the stomach muscle of a cow. yea it was disgusting, but the members loved me that I actually ate it! haha Gotta make those sacrifices sometimes! The ward here is great. We have a list, that assigns us with a lunch appointment every Sunday afternoon. It's nice that we aren't bombarded with lunch appointments, because they really do get you feeling so fat and full that you can't even move! Haha But, I have lost 4 pounds :) yay!
We had a cool experience the other night when we were out proselyting. I had this random craving for a Lindor chocolate haha I know, but anyways so we ran into this Bar and we started talking to the lady who worked there. After about two minutes of talking and introducing ourselves, we found out that her son has cancer, and she has been praying and praying lately to come to understand God. She started crying when we told her that we WERE an answer to her prayers, and that that is exactly why God sent us to talk to her. It was a tender mercy. A little reminder that there are people everywhere searching for truth, but just don't know where to find it!
The other night we were RUNNING to an appointment because we were late, and all of a sudden, ALL of the lights in the whole city went out. It was like the most chaotic 4 minutes of my life. It was so scary! It was honestly PITCH black. Streetlights, stoplights, all the stores, all the apartments. And we were freaking out, along with everyone in the city because we thought there was going to be like some terrorist attack or something. They went on like two minutes later and everyone made it! Reminded me of how crazy it had to have been when there was 3 days of complete darkness when Christ was born. It is like our lives without the gospel. I meet so many people every day, who, say they believe in God. but what does that do for us if we have no words to back our words up? Our religion is a religion of action. We don't do determined things, that determine our salvation. We aren't baptised, let alone as a baby, and then we have finished our works. It is a lifetime of progression. We live our lives constantly ACTING, PROGRESSING, STRENGTHENING our faith. So many people don't understand that.
It is pretty awesome. Bari's Saint, is San Nicola aka Babbo Natale aka SANTA! It is sweet that I will be here at Christmas time. We went to the old city of Bari today and it was really cool. We saw Saint Nick himself. dead of course, may he rest in peace, but it was pretty cool haha
We met this girl named Frederica on the street about two weeks ago. She was about 23, and really was listening to what we had to say. in the end she didn't really want to meet with us again because of fear. Fear that she had possibly been living a lie up until this point. Not necessarily living a lie, but living a religion with not all the truth. I felt really strongly that she needed the message, and I told her that as we were talking to her. Its not all the time that I feel like that. I tried and tried to get us another appointment, at least a phone number, but she wouldn't give it to us. THEN, all week I prayed for her that we would some how get another chance to see her. This week, (again when we were RUNNING to an appointment) I saw her! ANNNND, got her phone number! She couldn't deny (after I told her over and over again haha) that it was not just "coincidence" that we ran into her again! I even told her that I prayed that we would run into her, and we did. She had to give us her number ;) Miracles happen every day.
Our mission has set a goal to have 40 Baptisms before the end of the year. This means every companionship has to baptise at least one person before new years. We are working hard, and praying that we can not just have these 3 Baptisms, but find others who are ready to hear our message.
I know this gospel is true. How could it not be? I have a simple testimony, but it has come to be a solid rock for me in the last year. It truly does sustain me in moments of difficulty. I will never deny the things I know to be true. I know God lives, and he loves us so much that he sent his only begotten son to live a perfect life for us to look to. If we give all that we can to be like Jesus Christ, HE will always make up for the difference. He lifts us when we are sad, and helps us to have hope for the future. I will tell everyone i can, with the little time left, about this Jesus Christ who I have come to know. He is my best friend, and is waiting for us to open the door. I love you all so much. the church is true, and never forget it. DO something for someone else. Sorry I have been a little self absorbed in my last letters. The Lord does lift us, when we most need his help.
Vi voglio bene,
MONICA
...Sorella Miller
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