Easter was so good here in Kentucky 4-17-2017

4:43 PM

¡Hola Familia!

I hope y'all had a very happy Easter! Easter was so good here in Kentucky, and this week was seriously the happiest week. I love how softened people's hearts become as we celebrate the Savior. I had so much fun going around sharing the Prince of Peace video with as many people as I could and seeing a light turn on as they watched it. Those videos do such a good at inviting the spirit so quickly.

We had a lot of fun this week, on Saturday we went to a member's farm and there were so many people there! The whole ward was pretty much there. But they had a big Easter egg hunt and a brunch for everyone. It was fun to be able to talk with all of the members and to enjoy such a yummy brunch.

Sunday was amazing. I think this was the greatest Easter I've ever had. I hate to admit it but I think it was the first Easter I've had that was totally focused on the Savior. And the spirit that was there all day was just incredible, my heart was so full of gratitude. I am so grateful for my Savior and for all the He did for me. I know Him and I know He lives.

We have the best ward ever, we had four families invite us over for Easter dinner and many more people inviting us over for dessert! We couldn't go to all of them but I am so grateful to be serving in a ward where they take such good care of us missionaries! It was such a good Easter.

This week was awesome, so busy, and full of miracles. We had MLC on Tuesday and so we spent most of our day in Louisville, but MLC is always the best. We had some great trainings on following the spirit and on the Godhead. I love these meetings, they get me motivated every time to be a little better.

We had Zone Meeting on Thursday and Hermana Heil and I got to do a training for it. It was the coolest thing as we were preparing for this training, I've never felt so guided by the spirit before. It's always such a neat experience being able to feel the spirit so strongly and knowing exactly what your Heavenly Father wants you to say. After Zone Meeting we went on exchanges and Sister Moore came to Shelbyville with me. It was a party, we had so much fun. Sister Moore is seriously the most amazing missionary I was amazed at her Christlike example. I want to be like Sister Moore when I grow up.

We did lots and lots of service this week. We did our weekly service at the food bank, we did lots of yard work, and we were able to help some other people out with their house work. And I forgot to tell you in your personal email dad, but I mowed my first lawn this week! It was so much fun and shout out to Hermana Heil for teaching me! We had a ton of fun doing all of our service this week, and the weather was in the 80s so it was perfect!

We had some really cool spiritual moments throughout the week as well. Carla, we were able to have some contact with her this week, but we didn't get a lesson in. She got a new job so she's been busy with work. Raul, we didn't hear from him all week. And Kristy and her daughters weren't home for their lesson. Well we went to a lesson we had at 8:00 on Friday and our appointment didn't show up but right then we got a call from the Elders saying they just saw Kristy and she wants us to come over. So we ran over there and we had a great lesson with her and her daughters.

We had a lesson about baptism and the two girls, Anaia and Adrian, are the cutest little girls you'll ever see. They kept asking so many questions and kept saying they wanted to be baptized. We asked Kristy if this was something she wanted as well and she said yes! So we talked about the baptismal covenant and all that they need to do to prepare. Their baptismal date is May 27 and Kristy wrote it down on her calendar as soon as she heard it, it made me so happy. And to end the lesson Adrian told us her miracle she had during the week. She's 7 years old so just imagine the cutest 7 year old ever saying this, "I was outside playing and I looked up and the clouds were really dark and scary and so I closed my eyes and I said a prayer that the clouds would go away and when I opened my eyes the clouds weren't dark and scary anymore!" They are such a fun family, and I am so excited for them.

We've met with Mauricio and Pedro almost everyday this week and they are doing great. We're still reading in the Book of Mormon with them and they even said they feel so happy when they read in the Book of Mormon, it made me so happy for them. We asked them to go to church and the little stinkers said no, but Pedro was able to get a priesthood blessing last night and they're slowly but surely making progress.

Maribel finished her new member lessons this weekend and it was great! She hadn't been to church for three weeks in a row and when we got to her house she told us she wasn't going to be at church because she was going to be with her sister for Easter, so we were super sad. But we had a great lesson about baptism and confirmation with an emphasis on renewing our covenants through the sacrament. We prayed and prayed all week that we would be able to get her to church.

Hermana Heil and I had prayed and pleaded with our Father in a heaven that we could get new investigators and more of the people we are teaching at church. And as the week went by it seemed as if nobody was going to come. But we prayed and prayed and did everything in our power to get everyone to church. We called Mauricio and Pedro first Sunday morning and they said no. We made a few other phone calls and then decided to go knock on Raul's door before church. It was pouring rain and we went up to his house and knocked on his door. Nothing. So we knocked again. Nothing but at this point we're sopping wet. So third time's the charm and we knock again. Right as were about to leave Raul came out. It's 9:30 at this point and church starts at 10:00. After 10 minutes of begging and pleading we finally got him to agree to come to church but he said he needed to shower and change. So to make sure he was actually going to come we told him we would wait in the rain until he was ready and so we did. And right at 10:00 he came out all ready for church and he followed us over to the church.

We were sooo happy we were able to get Raul to church but the greatest thing was when we walked into the church (and we were late) we saw that almost everybody we had invited to church came. Maribel was sitting there with her family, Kristy and her daughters were there in their Easter best, Pedro surprised us and was sitting there waiting for his translation, and there were three other Hispanic less actives who had showed up that day. I was so grateful that our Heavenly Father blessed us with so many people at church and I was so happy as so many of our brothers and sisters were able to partake of the sacrament and renew their covenants with God. It was an Easter miracle for sure.

Easter was so amazing and I am so grateful for the sweet spirit I was able to feel yesterday. I am so grateful for our Savior's sacrifice and for his resurrection, I know it's true and I know one day all of us will have the priceless gift of being resurrected as well. I know He lives.

I hope y'all have an amazing week, I hope you know how much I love you and care about you! Be happy, because life is too short to be anything else.

Con amor,

Hermana Swapp

PS: "And now, after the many testimonies which have been given of him, this is the testimony, last of all, which we give of him: That he lives! For we saw him, even on the right hand of God; and we heard the voice bearing record that he is the Only Begotten of the Father--That by him, and through him, and of him, the worlds are and were created, and the inhabitants thereof are begotten sons and daughters unto God." -D&C 76:22-24