HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!!

Delaware Ward Halloween Party with the Que Kiddos   Sam and Jamie dressed up as Sister King and me! Hello amazing loved ones! Hope you are all having a tremendous day and are enjoying the beautiful fall season. It has been absolutely stunning here, but I feel that "W" word is upon us and soon it will be quite freezing. It has been an incredible week for many reasons. On Saturday we were able to watch Tessa enter the waters of baptism. Tessa is one of the most incredible girls I have ever met. At just the young age of 16 she has a stronger connection to the prophet Joseph Smith than anyone I know. I love the prophet Joseph Smith and I think it's because in one way or another I feel we can all relate to him. That is what Tessa saw and she immediately connected to him. She herself was wandering, wondering which church was right. She felt lost and she knew she ultimately had to pray to receive her answer. Tessa was introduced to the church through a member. This member was invited to give one of her friends a Book Of Mormon so she prayerfully decided which friend to give it to. The fact that she gave Tessa a Book of Mormon was completely inspired and I am grateful this member had the courage to share this beautiful joy with her close friend. After she was baptized she faced the crowd and bore the most beautiful testimony. You would have never guessed she had just found the church months prior. Her testimony was rock solid and she knew without a shadow of a doubt what she had stated was true because she took it to the Lord like Joseph Smith did and prayed about it. She has felt an abundance of God's love in her life, and she has developed a strong relationship with Him. As she was confirmed the words were spoken that because she had taken that step to be baptized, her family would be blessed. Her darling sister has already taken steps to entering the waters of baptism herself. Tessa is an amazing example to all her family members and she is also a wonderful example to me. Her passion for the things we taught her was out of this world. I admire her courage and I will never forget that testimony she bore and the many things she taught me. Tessa's Baptism I also have to give a little shout-out to the amazing girls, Sam and Jamie, for having the courage to share a Book Of Mormon with their teacher at school. They did it together and they role played over and over what they were going to say to this teacher. They sought out inspiration and prayed for guidance. They acted on a prompting and because they prepared themselves to give away this Book of Mormon the teacher responded well! Brother and Sisters do not let fear hold you back. Take a leap of faith and go for it! In other words Just do it!" You can change someone's life and fill a hole in their heart that they didn't even realize was missing. I am incredibly humbled and grateful for this time I have been able to spend in the Delaware area. These 6 months here have been precious. I am grateful for all those who have touched my heart and were able to see past my weaknesses and imperfections and be able to see Christ work through me. I'm sad to leave. This place feels like home and many people I have met have become "family." I love this area and I love all the incredible examples in it and the love and the strength they have shown me. If you are reading this, thank you for strengthening my testimony, and allowing me to grow. Thank you for letting me come into your life and taking a moment to hear the simple message we as missionaries share. I cannot even begin to describe how much each and every one of you mean to me. I love you and more importantly your Father in Heaven loves you! Have a wonderful week! Talk to you next time wherever I may be :) Love Sister Mathis

The Best Day Ever!

Clarence's Baptism

"It's a great day to be a missionary!"

I know that this work in absolutely true because if it isn't I wouldn't be here for one second. I know that our Heavenly Father and His Son Jesus Christ lead and guide this work and we have the privilege of being their mouthpieces here upon this earth. C.S Lewis once said,"There are no ordinary people" and I echo his statement. There are people out there, extraordinary people who are waiting to hear the gospel. Clarence McGuire is one of these people.

A few months back Sister Schauer's and I were pretty exhausted and starting to get discouraged. We were knocking a particular street and were about to leave because after knocking quite a few doors nothing was coming of it. In all that we do though we try to find "the why" behind it. We knew Heavenly Father had guided us to that street for a reason and we didn't want to give up until we found that reason. So we decided to knock one more door. This door was on the very end of the street, the very last house, and as we walked up we saw a man outside listening to his radio. We thought it was a miracle just to be able to catch someone outside that we could talk to. Just yesterday Clarence shared his input and was joking cursing that dumb radio, because it was on so loud he didn't hear us walking up.  He claims he didn't have a chance to run from us. It wasn't your typical first lesson, but it was exactly what Clarence needed and what caused him to want to learn more.  We got into some very deep doctrine and began to teach him about the plan of salvation and the importance of the temple. The spirit was there and we knew he could feel something and we were hopeful for the future. We set up a time to come back and lo and behold when we went back, he wasn't there. Sister King and I were pretty depressed.  We tried time and time again to see him but every time we tried to visit, he was either sleeping or not there. Eventually after many attempts we decided that he probably wasn't prepared at this time and didn't want to learn more, but we decided to try just one more time,  just to be sure.  His step-son answered the door this time and explained  that Clarence was not there but miraculously the step-son came out and started talking to us. During that time we were talking, Clarence pulled into the driveway. "Ah-ha," we thought, "You can run but you can't hide." Just kidding, we do nothing to take away anyone's agency. Well, Clarence came and sat down and we had a beautiful lesson with him. From that day on he never once canceled an appointment. He was always there eager and ready to learn and he always kept his commitments, and more importantly didn't take our word for it but sought out answers on his own through earnest prayer. If we had just given up on him, which we were so close to doing, he would never have received the blessings of this gospel. Just two days ago Clarence, at the youthful age of 76 was baptized and yesterday he was confirmed a member of the Church Of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

Clarence with his family

Sister George made these darling skirts for us!

Brothers and Sister, family and friends-  whatever you may be going through the Lord is mindful of you. Do not give up when times get hard and things may seem impossible. Keep fighting and proving to the Lord that you are willing to go that extra mile. I promise if we walk a little further and exercise our faith, even though it may only feel like a small particle, the Lord will bless us.

It is a beautiful day to be a missionary! I love you guys!

Love Sister Mathis

Impossible to Fail

"It is impossible to fail when you do your best when you are on the Lord's errand!"

Sam and Tabby's Baptism with Sister King and me

Hello amazing people! Just wanted to start out by saying how much I love you guys and also how much I absolutely love being a missionary! This work is amazing, it is the most beautiful work to be a part of and all of us have the divine privilege and responsible to share this gospel with those around us, to let them be embraced in a gospel full of eternal and pure joy. This week Sister King and I had the beautiful opportunity to watch Sam and Tabby enter the waters of baptism. For years they have waited and prepared for this day and finally the circumstances were right and they were able to make that lasting covenant with their Father in Heaven. Sister King and I were emotional when we walked into the church and saw the chapel packed with people for this baptism. We were worried no one would come since not many members know these girls. It was the most people I had ever seen at a baptism and they all came to support them. Many of the ward members had never even met them and yet they came and the support was beyond words. They loved these girls and took them in under their wings. It was a unique baptism and there were quite a few missionaries there, missionaries who had taught these precious sisters in the past and each missionary was able to bear testimony to them on the importance of baptism. Well unfortunately we have to come clean. We blew it big time. We failed to turn on the heater in the baptismal font and so the water was freezing. Since Sam is already terribly afraid of water, having ice cold water did not help the situation. Needless to say they went through with it anyway and the cheesy line of the night was although the water was cold the spirit in the room was warm. The poor girls did not stop shivering the whole meeting but it was one of the best and lively baptismal services I have been in. At the end their mother asked, "Is there usually this many people at baptisms?" We told her we had never seen this many people. She then said with tears in her eyes, "you mean to tell me that all these people came to support my girls?" She has seen a difference in their countenances and she has a desire to learn more and find for herself this happiness that has been missing from her life for so long.

The Blessing of the Que Kiddos

Yesterday it was a beautiful sacrament service. Gabbie and Cesar's radiant children were each blessed, and the prayers that were given in their behalf came uniquely and individually by the spirit. They were said in Spanish so I couldn't understand very much, but the spirit that filled the room as the prayers were being said was incredible. Just looking at this glowing family I started to have tears fill my eyes, and I felt so grateful Heavenly Father allowed me to be a part of their lives. I watched Cesar tenderly hold his new baby in his careful arms, I saw Christian intently watching the worthy priesthood holders bless and pass the sacrament, I watch Gabbie reflect on her tender motherly capabilities as she cared for her children and I saw Emilee smile back at me with a smile as big as the sun. As I watched the love this family had for each other it made me think of my amazing family. Sam and Tabby were also confirmed members of the church of Jesus Christ and received the gift of the Holy Ghost. After the prayers were said they looked so peaceful and happy. I loved sitting in that meeting with the Que family in front of me, Sam to my side, and Clarence, Tabby, and my wonderful companion sitting right behind me.

Lastly an update on Mr. Clarence. He is the most hilarious, stubborn, hard headed, loving 76 year old in the world, and he feels completely like family to me. We were having a lesson with him Monday  last week and suddenly I just happened to glance over at a calendar which was on the wall right behind him. For weeks he had been praying about being baptized on the 18th of this month. Well when I looked at the calendar I happened to notice there was something written on the 18th. The only day on the whole calendar with something written on it was the 18th. Since we were a ways away from the calendar we couldn't quite make out what was written so we asked Clarence and he started blushing and got the biggest grin on his face and he said, "it says join the church!"  He had prayed and received his answer. I want to testify to all of you that I know with all the certainty of my heart that God hears and answers our prayers. If you think for one second He is not mindful of your prayers, think again! He is actively engaged in our lives and His whole work and purpose is to bring to pass our immortality and eternal life. Clarence has his baptismal interview tonight and we are so excited for the incredibly bright future that he holds.

Here's something you don't see every day: Helping Gabbie to her car 

I have a testimony of this gospel. I have a testimony of my Savior Jesus Christ. I know He lived and He died for us, and lives still and directs this work. Our Father in Heaven and His Son Jesus Christ love us more then anything. I love you guys and I hope you all have an incredible week. Remember who you are and on whose side you stand for and never forget which way you face.

Love Sister Mathis

The Rock of Our Redeemer

Hello Hello my amazing friends and family!!

What a week it has been in the service of the Lord. How privileged I feel to be one of the 88 thousand missionaries serving around the world. This work is so sacred and it is a complete blessing to be a part of it.

Last week we had a specialized training meeting composed of 4 different zones. There was a large group of us missionaries in attendance and we all sat anxiously wondering what this meeting would be about. President Daines got up to open the meeting and said and I quote, "Remember how we talked about the Movie 'Meet The Mormons' that the church is putting out? Well today we are going to be watching that movie!" There was dead silence for a minute, because never in our wildest dreams did we think we would be able to watch a movie on our mission that wasn't "The Restoration" or "Finding Faith in Christ" let alone a movie that had not even been released into theaters yet! The missionaries went wild! It was the best day ever and I highly recommend if that movie comes to theaters near you, you take the time to go and see it. It is a powerful and uplifting movie and it explains some of the common misconceptions the Mormon religion faces.

This is how we found Clarence when we showed up on his porch for a lesson

Last Sunday, as I wrote about in my previous email, we were able to bring one of our investigators to church named Clarence. He thoroughly enjoyed church and claimed it was different than any other church he had been to since no one was standing up front yelling at him to repent or he was going to hell. We had a good laugh about that. We asked him in a later lesson, what was the deciding factor that made him come to church. He thought for a minute and said, "Well I woke up like any ordinary Sunday and got ready for the Flea market, but something just didn't feel quite right. An impression came to me that I needed to go to church." And Clarence being the stubborn man that he is said, "So I ignored it and went and watched TV. As I was watching TV the impression came again and again each time it came back stronger then before until I could not ignore it any longer so I hopped in my car and drove to church. "What an amazing moment it was to drive into the parking lot of the church and see his old blue pickup truck in the front of the parking lot. The following Monday Clarence had an appointment with the eye doctor. He didn't even want to go to the appointment because he feared what the doctor would tell him. He knew he had a blockage in his eye and if he did not treat it with surgery he would go blind in that eye. He had been praying hard and long for this visit with the doctor, yet he was very nervous. When the doctor examined him, He and Clarence  could not believe it. The blockage in his eye was completely gone. The Lord was so mindful of Clarence and was rewarding him for his obedience to the promptings of the Spirit by providing him with this incredible miracle. Our Heavenly Father and His son Jesus Christ were saying to Clarence "here I am" and Clarence at that point knew how much he mattered to them.

The other huge miracle and blessing of this last week was Sam and Tabby were interviewed and found worthy to be baptized this coming Saturday! We are so happy to share this special day with them and we know it will be the best decision they have ever made. We had a moving lesson with tears in our eyes about the importance of baptism and how proud their Father in Heaven is with them for making this decision. They know the commitment they are making and although it may not always be easy they know they are making the right decision. Our district leader was blown away by the strength of their testimonies. They have faced many challenges and have climbed many mountains already in their young ages and finally they will have something that no one can take from them, something that will continue to bring them true and lasting happiness. I love these girls and am excited to share Saturday with them.

Lastly I loved general conference. I was amazed at how often this scripture found in Helaman came up during the sessions. I think it is so fitting for our day and age. The scripture reads,

Helaman 5:12 And now, my sons (my friends and my family), remember, remember that it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your foundation; that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the whirlwind, yea, when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless wo, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall.

We must constantly be building upon that rock who is Jesus Christ.

Love you guys! Thank you for the prayers, the letters and the support in my behalf and in the behalf of all the people out here in Ohio

Love Sister Mathis

I am a Child of God

Clarence Comes to Church!

There is so much to be grateful for in this beautiful world we were given!

I cannot fully express the gratitude that is just swelling in my heart. This week has been absolutely incredible for so many reasons.

As many of you know we have two darling sisters preparing for baptism. Last week they came with us to church and were just radiating light. The following Monday we went over to have a lesson with them. They come from very humble circumstances, in fact they don't have very much at all and sometimes it is difficult to feel the spirit in their home, but when we went in on Monday we walked in and their home looked beautiful. They had rearranged the furniture, there was a picture of the Savior on the wall, and they spent a good deal of time cleaning it. We walked in and their home had a completely different feel. I felt the spirit as I have never felt before. It was overpowering as I walked in and it was incredibly moving especially as I looked into the faces of these beautiful girls and saw a happiness and a glow as I had never before seen in them. It is moments like this one that I would not trade for anything.

A few weeks ago we were feeling pretty down when an investigator who we knew had shown a lot of promise informed us that she did not want to take the lessons anymore. We couldn't quite figure out how she had come to that conclusion, in fact just the day before she had knelt down and prayed with us for the first time in years and she uttered the most beautiful prayer. We knew she felt the spirit and Heavenly Father knew she had felt it and He was not going to let her slip through the cracks. The day after she decided not to pursue the lessons, Heavenly Father answered her desperate plea and blessed her with a miracle that is inexplicable except through the power of God. She knew, with that answer to prayer, that Heavenly Father knew exactly who she was and what she was going through and she knew she needed to start taking the lessons again. On Saturday we were able to have a spirit filled lesson with her and extend a baptismal invitation of the 25th of October. It was incredible how before we even extended, she had brought up the principle of baptism on her own. She knew it was a necessary step and she explained how she had been baptized before, but she didn't feel any different after that ordinance. She felt incomplete, like something was missing. We explained how this time when she is baptized it would be done exactly how Christ was baptized with the proper Priesthood authority. It would be complete. And following the baptismal ordinance would come the beautiful gift of the Holy Ghost. Since Saturday she has told all of her friends to come to her baptism! The excitement in this girl is incredible and from day one I knew she would be something special. So pray for the amazing Tessa as we prepare for this life changing day.  Now I have to tell the funny story that went along with this lesson. Pretty much right after we walked in the door to meet with her, Tessa asked how many people could baptize her. We told her one person could baptize her and one person could confirm her. She looked a little sad and said, "ah man because I was hoping you two could baptize me." I couldn't help but think of one of my favorite line in the movie Pirates of The Caribeean when Barbosa says, "I am disinclined to acquiesce to your request...means no." We had a good laugh but we knew we had some clarifying to do.

Also on Saturday we had a lesson with an older gentleman named Clarence who we have been teaching for a few months now. Clarence is amazing, in fact he reminds me a lot of my amazing Uncle Greg, and I can't help but think that my uncle Greg is helping us teach Clarence from the other side of the veil. Clarence loves to tell stories and has quite the sense of humor. Clarence loves to tell us, "I have gone from church to church trying to find answers to these questions and no one could do it. I don't know how you young ladies did it, but you answered those questions that nobody else could." At the end of the lesson we talked to him boldly about church and the importance of it, however he did not give us a definite answer of if he would be there or not. We called him on Saturday evening to see if we could get an answer and all we got was his voicemail. On Sunday before church we decided to drive over to his home to see if he was there. His famous blue truck was nowhere in sight. I told Sister King, "He is either one of two places. He is at the farmer's market (which he goes to every Sunday) or he is at church." We said a few silent prayers in our heart that he would be there. We pulled into the parking lot of the church and guess whose blue truck was parked right front and center? It was Clarence's! He arrived  half an hour early dressed in a very nice suit (which was an accomplishment in itself since he hates having to dress up).  At the end of the meeting he expressed how much he enjoyed it and how strong he could feel the spirit. He even went up to the bishop and said, "these sister are accomplishing miracles. They got me to pray out loud for the first time in my life, and they got me to come to church for the first time in 40 years." Now I know without a doubt it wasn't us that made these miracles happen. It was my Father in Heaven and all those angels who are watching over Clarence.

One more amazing moment of the week! We were able to take the other Sam to the General Relief Society broadcast. As we sang the well known song, "I Am A Child of God" tears filled my eyes as I looked down and saw Sam singing so beautifully. Just months prior Sam did not believe in a God. She did not know she had a Father in Heaven who loves her and cares about her and her she was months later singing and testifying that she is a child of God.

I love this work. Spreading the gospel is my source of true and lasting happiness. I know miracles are happening everyday and if we take a moment to express our gratitude daily we will come to find out how many tender mercies are bestowed upon us daily.

I love you guys!

Sister Mathis

What a week!!

Sister King and I with our friend Clarence

With the cute Que Kiddos

 

I feel very grateful to share some of my experiences this past week with you. It has been an incredible week, and a week where many unexpected things happened. 

We have been spending quite a bit of time going up to the small college campus located here in Delaware Ohio. We have loved getting to talk to people around our age and talk about religion and faith with them. We have met quite a few athletes that play on the various sports teams which has been fun. OWU is a religious school so a good majority of the people we come in contact with have a pretty solid foundation and a belief in Jesus Christ. In order to go onto campus we had to meet with Reverend John Powers who is the head Chaplin. I was nervous and didn't quite know what to expect, but he is one of the most amazing people I have ever met. He was so loving and kind, and expressed how grateful he was to have us on his campus. He said, "I've never seen sisters before. It's always been the elders!" We were pretty excited to be the first group of sisters to go and contact on campus. We didn't say much, he did a majority of the talking, but he talked about the spirit that he could feel when we were with him. He said, "this campus needs you." He is not a member of our faith and I don't know if he ever will be, but he notices a difference in the "Mormons" and he truly respects them. There are so many amazing people out there! They are not just people we can casually walk by, they are our brother and sisters. Heavenly Father loves and cares about them just as much as he loves us and when we can start to see people through Heavenly Fathers eyes, the world will start to change. One day we were walking on campus alongside this girl. I felt like we needed to say something to her, and Sister King felt that same impression. Before we knew it we both started talking at the exact same time to her. Talk about being in tune with the spirit! We got to know her better and within just a few moments she had developed a trust in us and asked if she could share something very personal with us. She opened up completely and explained how she recently had lost two family members who were very close to her. An opportunity presented itself and we were able to testify of Heavenly Father's plan of salvation. She was completely engaged in the conversation and we ended up talking with her for about an hour. We set up a time to come back and we were able to talk about the Book of Mormon. In just a few days she has read quite a bit of it and has thoroughly enjoyed what she has read. Just yesterday without any hesitation she joined us for church which was an incredible blessing.

Also joining us for church were two amazing girls with whom we are working towards a baptismal date of October 11th. They are sisters and have been taking the missionary discussions for about three years now. Just a few months ago we decided to go visit them and meet them. They have faced many challenges in life, actually they live pretty pretty rocky lives, but are some of the strongest girls in the world, and they hold their faith higher than anything. They loved church and the feeling they felt when they were in a house of the Lord. I know the Lord is in charge and we  I know He will ultimately decide what is best for these sweet girls. So please pray for Sam and Tabby.

Last night I was able to finish the Book of Mormon. I love that Book. It is my map, my safeguard against the ever changing word. It is a personal connection I have to my heavenly Father and  His son Jesus Christ. As I was reading Moroni's last words, I was blown away by his courage and faith. He was standing tall and doing all he could to protect the sacred record that would later come to be called the Book Of Mormon. One of my favorite lines in all the book of Mormon is, "And I Moroni will not deny the Christ." I too cannot deny the Christ. I will walk by Him, and do all I can to protect and defend this name. When I get to stand before Him and He asks me "what have you done with my name" I hope to answer  that I have done all I could do.

I love this work. I love the Book of Mormon and the many examples and testimonies we can learn from in it. I love this gospel and I love my Savior and the perfect example He has set for all of us.

I love you all!! Have a tremendous week!

Sister Mathis

Random Acts of Service?

P-Day Activity with Sister King
September 17, 2014

Hello guys! I wanted to start this email by first thanking all of you for your prayers in my behalf. I have felt their power especially this last week and want you to know how grateful I am for all of you and for your strength and testimonies. I love you all.

Okay I have to share this story. It's too good not to share! The other day we received a call from a less active member of the church who we had never before met. On the call he asked if we would be willing to help his injured aunt. He was out of the state and there was no one to help her. As missionaries we willingly agreed. So we drove to this man's home where the aunt was staying. He told us to go in the back door.  We arrived and let ourselves in. On a chair right by the door was a rather large 75 year old lady, sweet as can be. We started talking to her and recognized that she was in some pretty serious pain. She was a nurse and so she explained to us that she would walk us through what she needed us to do. Our task was to help her use the bathroom. Pretty fun task eh? She looked up us and said, "okay I'm going to need one of you to bear hug me and help pull me up." Sister King slowly started to back away which left me to try and help this lady whom we had just met. I put my arms around her and tried with all my might to lift her up. Well after several moments, we began to move about a half an inch and then she let out a loud moan and then just laid completely still. I was like "oh my goodness what did I just do to this poor lady? I've killed her!" A couple long seconds later she was moving again, thank goodness! Anyway we realized it would be impossible to move her. Shortly after, a neighbor showed up who was also a nurse so the three of us attempted to move her. I had to admit, we just couldn't do it. So the neighbor decided the best thing to do would be to call an ambulance. Before the EMT's came in we had to get the dogs out of the way. One of the dogs was very sweet, but the other dog was a little demon dog that looked like it wanted to rip our faces off. I left that job to Sister King. She grabbed its fur and scooted it all the way across the house and into the garage. We were able to get both dogs out of the way without losing any limbs. Well the ambulance came and took her away and Sister King and I just looked at each other and wondered what in the world had just happened. So that's our story going to a random house with a random lady, throw in a rabid dog and an ambulance and you have a pretty good story. We also took down a lady's Christmas tree this week, did a bunch of laundry for this sweet elderly lady, and helped clean out an incredibly crowded basement full of hardware. It's been a fun week of service and I can truly testify that when you are in the service of your fellow men you are only in the service of your God.

It has been a great week so far! I have truly been happy these last few days. Last night we went to go contact a referral that someone from Utah had given us the information for. We were out in the country and could not find this particular house where the lady lived. After driving around we were convinced this address didn't exist. We tried calling the number on the referral and it was a dead line. We were about to turn back when all of a sudden Sister King was able to spot the address we were looking for. We were excited, but it looked more like a business than a house. After we drove up we saw a lady outside and found out it was the exact lady we were looking for. She was incredibly kind, and just so humbled and honored that we were led to find her. She send us home each with a beautiful bouquet of daisies. I know in that moment Heavenly Father led us to find her. Don't give up! It is in those moments when we want to give up that we find the miracles! Heavenly Father is in charge, hold to your faith and believe in Him!

Singing "A Whole New World" on OSU Campus

Have a great week!

Love you! 

Sister Mathis