Family,

I can't believe that another week has flown by. I feel like al of my letters recently have been huge so I am going to try to be brief. My testimony of fasting has grown so much in these last few months. I have fasted more in these months than ever. I haven't been feeling really well and I asked in my prayer to start my fast that the Lord would give me strength and allow me to see a miracle. 

Yesterday, a sister (the sister of the bishop's wife, super active) came up to me informing me that she has shared what she had learned with from us in our food lesson with her husband. He has been less-active for about 30 years. He comes to church but he doesn't partake of the sacrament or do any other thing that would be considered active. He doesn't follow the word of wisdom and just plainly doesn't believe in/understand some doctrines. We had planned something in this visit but right before we were about to start the lesson I felt prompted that we should share something that I learned in the interim training that we had. So I changed it last minute and my companion just felt it as well. We talked about the Spirit and how it sanctifies us. We compared 3 Nefi 27:19-20 and D&C 20:77 and showed her how the promise of the sacrament is that we can have the spirit always with us if we try with all of our might to do the three things mentioned in the sacrament prayer and the spirit then is what sanctifies us and allows us to be clean. 

Well she shared that with her husband because he asked her "Why can't I feel the Spirit like you can?" and it had a profound impact on him. She invited her husband to take the sacrament AND HE DID! For the first time in 30 years! He had chosen not to take it because of certain reasons but after sacrament meeting he asked his wife to ask us to give him the missionary lessons newly! The sister who was supposed to give us food didn't show up so we ended up being able to go to eat with them and start talking with him. He wants to enter the temple one day with his family. It was so special! He is truthfully very intimidating sometimes and often very closed off. He was that way in the lesson but we asked him to do the closing prayer on our knees and he offered the most sincere and open prayer I have ever heard. I did not expect that from him at all. He even asked the Lord to allow him to feel the spirit more because we had taught in the lesson that it is something that we can ask for in our prayers. It was so incredibly special! 

Truthfully everything worked out so wonderfully! IT WAS A MIRACLE! I mean, he even had to close down his restaurant yesterday because of the elections so he wasn't distracted by his job. The Lord is so merciful with us. I love missionary work so much. This wasn't the only thing that happened yesterday. As I mentioned I hadn't felt that well but I know that the Lord has given me a new spirit to keep working. Sometimes I am so very hard on myself. I truthfully beat myself up. Sometimes when I feel bad I feel like I shouldn't be doing what I am doing but something within me fights. Saturday night, I read the adjusting to missionary life booklet that they have given us and I just realized that I am so mean to myself. But something came to my mind and I realized that I need to start thinking more positively especially towards myself. So as I wrote in my journal thinking about things I realized one very good thing about myself. I don't want to sound like I am being prideful but I realized that I just don't ever give up. Even when I thought about my volleyball days, even on the days where, embarrassingly, I may have let out tears on the court, I never gave up trying to get better. And now, in the mission field, when the days are hard or I don't feel good I just get up and do it. And I don't give up trying to do what the Lord has asked me to do. And I am grateful that the Lord has blessed me with this ability. And realizing this ability has given me a new light and a new hope and a new vision to keep working for these last 8 weeks. 

I know I said it would be brief but I had to write these things. And I have to give an open thanks to my Father in Heaven for the mercy that he has had with me. He has opened my mind, expanded my vision, enlightened my heart, and loved me even when I have failed. He is so perfect and knows us perfectly. We are here to progress and to learn and to love. And I know that this progression can't happen unless we look to Him in everything thought and action. I know that we can't do it without Him.

I invite all of you to come unto Christ and be perfected in Him. We have a divine purpose and I know that as we learn about the restored gospel of Jesus Christ, we can come to know that purpose and live a more fulfilling and a happier life.

I love you all

See you soon!

Hermanaut

56 Days

Also, I have just found out that my grandma on my father's side isn't doing well. I ask you to please keep Edith Naut in your prayers. Thank you