Mikayla Ockey: It's a mini.

WE HAVE A MINI MISSIONARY. WE HAVE A MINI MISSIONARY. WE HAVE A MINI MISSIONARY. Hehe I'm just hooping and a hollering over here cause I'm just so stinkin'excited. They do this thing where the youth come spend a week with us and see what missionary work is like. And this time is way better than my first mini missionary (from my first week in Germany) considering I can actually understand what she says instead of the last just-knod-and-smile-philosophy. She is just darling. Totally worth sleeping on the couch for the next week. And she was able to kick off the week with the most successful chalking extravaganza yet. There were so many times when every single person was talking to someone. My favorite convo was with this guy who was a former criminal and just telling me his whole conversion story of finding Jesus Christ. And then as I testified that there is even more that he can add to that. He was just eating it up. Way cool.

Heavenly Father trusts us a whole lot. He really has surrounded us with some of the best most prepared people ever. They are just wonderful. My heart is just exploding with love. I swear these people just absorb all of my thoughts. Which is great except then I ride the emotional roller coaster with them. This was one of those times when I really started to recognize what it means to be emotionally, physically, spiritually utterly exhausted. But it's all good. We just built a fort, watched a cheesy Mormon movie and I'm good as new. Ready to go on for the next week :)

Satan is really trying to do everything he can possibly do to not let Jennifer get baptized. To keep her from making this commitment. Literally everything possible. But that's okay because she wants this so bad. We want this for her. God wants this for her. And we are just gonna cheer her on the whole way through! It was one of those "man why is satan so good at his job moments?" When I just pray like a lot. A lot. And then she comes to church and as soon as she walks in Laura (who had helped us teach earlier this week) motions over to her to come sit by her. Seriously it meant the world to me. I had been praying so hard for her to have true friends in our ward and not be attached to the missionaries. And then everyone in the ward just started coming over and inviting her to family night or volunteering to come teach with us when we teach her and everything imaginable. And they had no idea that her entire family has left her. And all her friends and that literally all she has right now is us and God. Ah. I was just overflowing with gratitude for a supportive ward. Tyler comes and plays by me. And there I was. Cheerios in lap. crayon in hand. just filled with complete love and peace that it will all work out.

Ah I am just so grateful to be a missionary. To have the support from Heavenly Father. To know that this is the truth. To bring it to those people around me.

love you oodles. happy back to school days.

xoxoxox

s. heywood

ps: the miracle fast starts this week. Eep. Bring on the miracles.