This is the mission president's daughter.

              The sister on the right is her new companion, Sister Currie.

                                          SISTER SNOW!!!

The start of a new transfer is always a crazy thing. But this one is a bit crazier then the rest because I had to, with 3 other sisters, split the ward I have been serving in. This was hard because it meant that I have to give almost all of my precious friends to the care of the other sisters. Which also means that I don't get to see them anymore :( but I know that this is what the Lord wants and needs, therefore I will keep on!

So my new companion is AMAZING! I love her! We have so much fun together beat boxing as we walk down the street and making lame missionary raps! I know what your thinking... two little white girls rapping.... but don't judge, its a sin! No but seriously Sister Currie is powerful! She has a way with everyone and she has only been out 3 months. I'm pretty sure that she is teaching me more then I could ever teach her! 

So because of the split and the fact that the other sisters got 95% of the investigators we started this week with finding. We went out and searched with a prayer in our heart and the spirit by our sides and saw miracles. We met a woman named Teresa on Wed. We started to talk about the Book of Mormon with her and she kindly refused it. But we didn't stop there, no not us, so we shared some of our favorite scriptures and bore powerful testimonies. By the end she said, "how can I refuse." She said she will read and that we can come back to check up. The Lord has put so many people in our path who are ready for this. A few weeks ago Sister Hiapo and I found a less active member named Daniel. This was a miracle and continues to be. Sister Currie and I went to the appointment we had with him and shared a story with him about the Atonement. The spirit was like a ton of bricks that rested upon all of our shoulders. As he spoke he did so with great emotion in his voice. Sister Currie bore a beautiful and very strong testimony and just added to the already great spirit there. I have a very firm testimony that we do NO teaching. All we are meant to do is provide the spirit and that we did.

Another great spiritual experience that we had this week was in meeting a less active member of this ward. His name is Brother Hand. MIRACLE does not even start to describe him. In the beginning he was not to interested in talking to us, but then he felt THE SPIRIT, that is where things changed. We talked with him and joked and laughed. He told us that he has not been to church sense he was 14 and he is now 87. He told us that his wife died last October, they had been married for 61 years 1 week and 1 day. I was able to bear testimony about how he can be with his sweet wife forever, and we can help him get there. I love talking to people about temple because that is why I am out here, to help families be forever. He invited us in but we had to decline because we did not have a third sister. So we set up a time to come back with a sister so  that we can help him be with his wife forever! What a tender mercy this was to us.

Last night we met the most amazing woman. Like AMAZING in all caps. I wish everyone we talked to was like her. We were parking as we went to try a former. As we got out of our car a woman driving by waved at us which is not a common thing sadly. people tend to think we're not human because we wear skirts and have name tags... so this made us smile as we headed toward the home of the former. AND Lo and behold it was her house. We said hello to her and with excitement she said that she had seen us walking earlier that day and wanted to talk to us. She asked if we were Mormon and we said yes. This news excited her. She asked us if we had time to sit down and talk with her! (A phrase that every missionary hopes to hear) So of course we did. She is the most amazing and giving woman I have ever met. She, without hesitation, started to offer us water and food and this and that. She had us pick avocados off her tree, then oranges, and beans, the list goes on and on. She gave us everything she had to offer!  Her enthusiasm was stupendous. We talked with what little time we had. We asked her if there was anything that we could do for her and she said, "Come back!" This was already our plan and that is how we got our new golden investigator! The cool thing is that we had been praying for someone who was prepared to stop us and talk to us this week. And in the last hour of Sunday that prayer was answered!

Sister Currie is amazing. I tell her how she is a power house and it is true. She is on fire and is only worried about being obedient. I love this because it brings so many miracles. We have a great time working and teaching and have already learned so much from each other. I am so excited to be with her for 7 weeks!

Family and friends, this work is true. The Book of Mormon is my aid and my salve for all my wounds. Christ is my rock and my strength. Prayer works better then any medication, use it. Have it be the first thing you do in any situation. Listen to the spirit because you will be blessed if you do. My goal this transfer is to be able to recognize the spirit with perfectness and then follow without delay. I want Him to guide me more fully then he is now and I know that I can do that by listening carefully and practicing A LOT. I have been praying for opportunities to recognize the prompting that I receive and it WORKS. If anyone has any good studies on the spirit or anything that you would like to share I would love to hear them.

I love you. I love this work and know that it is true without a doubt in my mind. Yes it is the hardest thing I have ever done. But I want to be like my Savior and I cant do that without carrying a cross too. I know these challenges are just shaping me to be who I need and want to be. Let my will be swallow up in His I pray ever day. Keep on keeping on it the work of the Lord.

Love Sister Draney

P.S. GREAT NEWS SISTER SNOW IS NOW A SISTER TRAINING LEADER!! I MIGHT GET TO GO AND WORK WITH HER FOR A DAY FOR EXCHANGES!!!! I just a little excited over this!

Every week as I sit and write this email I get thoughts as did Nephi in 2 Nephi 33:1 when he talks about the not being mighty in writing like unto speaking... because it is a lot easier to speak by the spirit then to write by it. So there is my great dilemma for the day. But I hope and pray that as you read this email that the spirit will attend you and speak to you what I am not able to.

Okay so first we got an investigator to church yesterday!!! YAY! His name is Carl. I don't remember waht I have or have not written about him so...

Carl is a man that we have been teaching for about 3 or 4 weeks now. We found him our first week of the transfer on our way to see an investigator. We stopped him on the street and talked to him about the gospel. He told us that 28 years ago he was looking for a faith and was introduced to Buddhism. He has been practicing sense. We shared part of the restoration with him and were able to set up a time to teach him more. We have had to adapt many of our lessons to Carl because of several disabilities that he has but the spirit always guides and helps us do so. On Saturday we had a lesson with him. At the end of the lesson we invited him to come to church and shared what it would consist of. He agreed and so we arranged a ride for him. 

He expressed to us before the reason he doesn't like other churches is because the last time he went to one NO ONE said hi to him or welcomed him at all. Lucky for us our church is great at that! Right after sacrament meeting there were like 5-8 people that came and said hi and introduced themselves. It made him beem! What a great church we are apart of!

This week was a bit rough but really great at the same time. We were dropped by a LA and his non member wife. But I know without a doubt in my mind that Matt (the LA) felt the spirit as we bore our testimoney to him about the importance of this gospel. He felt it and felt Godly sorrow WHICH WAS GREAT! I love walking away for talking to ANYONE, even if it is right after being dropped, and knowing that I did all that I could because I followed the spirit. I pray that he too will choose to follow the spirit because the more we do the more we are able to recognize the promptings that we receive. 

“You cannot lift another soul until you are standing on higher ground than he is. You must be sure, if you would rescue the man, that you yourself are setting the example of what you would have him be. You cannot light a fire in another soul unless it is burning in your own soul.”

Miracle report! So last week we found this lady named Susan. Okay she was put in our path. 100% She has been SUPER sick for the past 4 years. Because of that she is mostly in her room at Friendship manner (a big community for elderly). But one Tues she was sitting outside by where some of the other elderly people sit (which is on the way to our car). As we headed out we stopped and talked to her. We told her what we had been doing (which was service) and offered to help her with some stuff the following week.

Okay so we went over and she didnt have anything for us to do so we taught her the first lesson! SHE IS AMAZING! Her spirit blows me out of the water! I love being around her. So as we teach her and she eats it up. The spirit is like a powerhouse that hits all of us. She is so ready for this gospel. 

She told us how she has not been about to go to church for the past 4 years so her spirit has been so weak. She said that recently she started looking for her "spiritual teacher". She talked to a couple people but no luck. Then she paused. "But the moment I started talking with your two girls I knew that you were my spiritual teachers." WOW! Miracle. She is reading the BOM and loves it. But all she needs your prayers. She is still to weak to come to church. We know that prayers are answered and that the Lord loves her and will help her.

Heavenly Father puts people in our paths for a reason. He gives us the Holy Ghost to help us understand that reason and to not miss out on the opportunity to help one of His children. So I invite all of you to pray for an opportunity to help someone this week that will allow you to see the spirit working through you. I can promise you that if you will do this with a sincere heart and real intent having faith in Christ that he WILL provide a way. He will bless you are help you and give you strength.

I leave these things in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen

Kate didn't have as much time as she wanted to write to us this week but I have asked her to send me the letter that she sends to her mission president simply because they are awesome.  So this week we all get to read her letter to the president instead of a letter to us.

This week has been a week full of miracles. I have learned in one way that we are prompted and guided a lot more then we often realize. I would say to the point that we are always receiving spiritual guidance in one way or another. The trick it to be thoughtful enough to recognize it and act upon it. This is one thing that I have been earnestly been trying to do. Miracles have come from it and I feel better all the way around because I know that I am following my Father.

This week Sister Hiapo and I sis a fast of sorts. We both want to find teach and baptize but we know that we cannot do this on our own. So we gave of ourselves so that we would be closer to the spirit and recognize more of those promptings that we receive on a daily basis. So Mon- Wed we fasted from any and all negative thoughts. This is something that we should be doing anyway but I knew that as we did it together that we would be more unified and that the spirit would help our companion ship as well. Wow how it worked.

I know that Heavenly Father loves us because He does bless us A LOT. He sends us to those who are in need and they come through small and simple means. One such miracle this week was in finding Tere, a new investigator. We had planned to see/ find a LA member before dinner. But as we got to the street with their apartments we realized that we didn't have the building number only the app number. A thought came to my head to just go and try that building and see if its the right one. So we did. A woman answered the door, it was not our LA. But we declared to her. I know that this is the person that Heavenly Father wanted us to find. She is going through a rough spot and needs and wants spiritual guidance. We told/ reminded her that she has a Father in Heaven that knows her and loves her so much. We shared a scripture with her and talked a little about what we share. We asked her if we could come and teach her more. She was thrilled and said yes. 

I know that Father is preparing people for us. I know that she is ready and that this will be exactly what she needs.

We also found a woman named Renee. She was potential that visited. It was very cool because we, as companions, we so unified as we taught her a door step restoration. The spirit was able to take our simple testimonies and questions to her heart. She was grateful for the message and invited us back to share more with her and her daughter.

Because we followed the guidance of "Talk to Everyone" we found and were given an opportunity of service. Every Tuesday we go and help a member of our ward with her apartment. As we were leaving last Tuesday we stopped to talk to an elderly woman. She asked us who we were visiting and we told her that we are missionaries and that help a woman with her apartment every week. She was very impressed that we would do that and asked if we knew anyone else that would be willing to help her. She has been very sick and is limited on a lot of things that she use to do. We eagerly said that we would love to. She was grateful and said we can talk to her as we help her. The Lord puts people in our path all we have to do is be willing to open our mouths. 

It was a great weak. I have learned so much about the light of Christ and personal revelation. Both of which I an very grateful for!

I know that this work will go forward and I am honored and grateful that I get to be apart of it.