Subways, a fire, and a baptism date!

Wow guys I can't believe another week has gone by. So many amazing things happened this week, it is hard to even know where to begin! 

Well, for one thing, we got out of quarantine!! 

You might wonder what that first breath of fresh air smelled like. In reality, it was a whiff of garbage that needs to be taken to the dump. But deep down, it smelled like freedom. Sister Lines and I went on a run to central park. It was beautiful. We ran everywhere and anywhere. We saw turtles and ducks and butterflies. We saw all kinds of people walking their dogs. I learned pretty quickly that we need to not only know the names of the people we pass in the park, but also the names of their dogs. I'm working on that one!

The first day out of quarantine we had district council in-person. We were running late and so Sister Lines and I was running to get there on time. I followed her as closely as I could, but Sister Lines is quick! We dashed down the stairs and into the subway. I looked in awe as the subway pulled up. We went from subway to subway and finally got off. As we climbed the stairs quickly, I saw the buildings rise all around us and people bustling around. But as I looked to my left I saw the temple. It was beautiful. It was perfect. I slowed just enough that Sister Lines had to slow her power stroll. That moment was strangely serene for me. In a moment of craziness, the temple stood with clarity. It was almost as if all things stood still. I love the temple! 

On Friday of this week, we had exchanges! I was able to lead the area and Sister Yan came out here to the Upper East Side. As we worked together, I was enthralled by her story. Sister Yan is from China, on a small coastal town. When she went to college, she had a friend who introduced her to the gospel. When she found out for herself that it was the truth, she decided to get baptized. Her parents didn't want her to and got really upset with her. But she did it anyway. When she later felt prompted to go on a mission, her parents once again fought her on it, but she had made her decision. As she told me this, she explained that each week she teaches them the gospel on her P-days and hopes that one day they will understand why she gives everything to the church. In her broken English, she testified: "this is the greatest cause." I was struck by her testimony. She knew why she was here, and nothing was going to stop her from accomplishing her mission. I love Sister Yan. She has taught me what it means to be committed to the gospel of Jesus Christ. 

One of the people we are teaching is named Johanne. Johanne is smart and dedicated. She was recently passed off to us from the Bronx missionaries. As we have been teaching her, I have been amazed at her willingness to change to follow Jesus Christ. This week, we taught her about the Plan of Salvation (God's plan for our happiness!) When we explained to her that she can get to the celestial kingdom to live with her family forever, tears rushed down her cheeks. The Spirit entered like a flood. At that moment, we invited Johanne to be baptized. She accepted. I knew in that moment, just how much God loves Johanne. My heart filled to the brim as I thought about her path to follow Jesus Christ, and just how proud God is of her. It was a beautiful experience. 

It has been a beautiful, amazing week full of miracles. I cannot even begin to explain them all. What I do know is that God is good, and this is His work. He loves his children infinitely more than we will ever begin to understand. 

To wrap this email up, I will share a hilarious story. Sister Lines and I had a crazy Sunday yesterday. We were running like mad to get to church and ward council, and all the in-betweens. When we got home, we were starving. Sister Lines popped a piece of pizza in the oven to warm it up for lunch. As all good missionaries, we were contacting our people who came to church and forgot about the pizza in the oven. When we could smell smoke, well, we remembered then. Sister Lines rushed to the oven and opened it up. Smoke wafted out and the pizza was on fire. Immediately the fire alarm went off. Sister Lines grabbed a towel and began blowing the smoke away from the fire alarm. I rushed to get the pizza out of the oven and grabbed it with an oven mitt. I held it over the trash waiting for it to cool as the cheese slipped off the pizza and into the trash. RIP to Sister Lines' lunch haha. 

This week has been fantastic! I feel so so blessed to be here in New York City. God really does have a plan for me, and for you. One thing that keeps coming to my mind this week is that God is always good. He never shortchanges us. He wants to bless us. He beckons us to come home, to come back to His arms. He is proud of us when we give our best. He is cheering us on every day. God is good, always. 

I love you all!! Keep praying for Anna, Zoila, and Johanne as they continue to get ready for baptism! Thank you for all your support and prayers. It means the world. 

The church is true. 

Be happy. Be brave. Be smart.

Love,

Sister Miller 

Pictures:

Sister Lines and I in central park!

My parents sent the cutest package with all the necessities of Tapatio, cookies, and cute little notes! It made my life! 

The SUBWAY!

Me and the best temple!!

Sister Yan and I!

The Sisters in the city! 

Hay Bay,
Hey there! Three people this week have told me they love your emails. 3. That’s a lot since I don’t see a lot of people. Heather, Salena, my mom have all called you to tell me. So... I don’t know anything. Listen to your heart. 

Also, I spoke at girls camp today and the Meachem girl texted me and asked that I let you know that you and your companion know that you inspired her. And she is now doing to try harder. 

Look at you! Being amazing. 

Love you, Mom 

Hailey Bay,

I thought of you on Friday as I pushed play for Friday Fight. Let me tell you it was a fight. I can’t believe how much you lose when you’re not doing that type of workout or when you take a break. Let me tell you I was dying. I kept thinking about how you would probably be glad I wasn’t torturing you to please workout with me. 🤣. Poor Amber. I’ve convinced her to go on no walks thus far, but we did go on a bike ride today. We brought our bikes to the cabin and we did the loop. But my bottom was on fire. For real. I made it up the last big hill without stopping and I shouted my excitement. Amber thought I was a goof as she told me so.

Amber is trying to get a group of girls to come to the cabin. She is struggling to get them to answer. I felt bad for her. But mostly, I think it’s because they all have jobs and they are trying to balance that. I think Ambee should get a job. I just haven’t wanted her to grow up. It’s probably time. I can’t hold her back anymore. She is such a fun girl with a bright light. It’s time she shares it more. I think a job would be good for her. Either a job or pole vaulting. But, she should probably get involved again.

Well, I am just sitting in the gator by the culvert all by myself. I stopped the gator to take in the scenery and to ponder. I think we are closest to God when we take the time to take it all in. I’m trying to do that today. I love the sound of the water, the light summer breeze in the trees, and the summer heat. The grasshoppers are annoying, but I guess they can add to the ambiance too.

The Anderson’s made another platform. Amber is so excited. But, a little nervous. I’m sure it will be fun.

They also added a level to the other platform so it will be easier to zipline. They are are good friends to grandpa.

I’m feeling pretty special that Heavenly Father has blessed our family so much.

I hope we never forget it. Life can get busy with the rush that it is easy to misplace what we know.

While I was at Lake Powell, I started thinking of comparisons and judgments and how satan gets things all clouded. These are some of my thoughts:

Something I have been learning on my journey of faith is that we are all at different places, and truly—we need to be careful that the judgement we make it on our own spiritual progression. When we judge ourselves as “doing well” we need to be careful that we are not assuming “all is well in Zion”. We may be doing all that we can, and that is okay, but as soon as we flip from evaluating ourselves and placing ourselves above others our judgment is no longer righteous. There was a time that I thought that drinking no caffeine meant I was doing something righteous—I know crazy. But, the thing is we all have little things we do that we may or may not think is better than another. Some sort of righteous barometer. God doesn’t work that way. He wants our desires and our hearts and there isn’t a measuring stick to what we do or do not do. It comes down to our hearts. As we focus our hearts on Him, all the little things fall into place—if those things are important. The funny thing is most of those little things aren’t important. The spirit tutors us in importance as we live the gospel. We do not have the righteous barometer.

We create expectations for ourselves and others. In our minds, we have a tendency to think a good member of the church looks a certain way. Those expectations are no longer there for me. I don’t think we have to fit a certain mold anymore. Truly, the real thing that matters comes down to our hearts. We can have tendencies that may or may not line up with what we assume a member of the church would look like or do, but at the end of the day—God sees our hearts. Men have a tendency to see outward appearances while God sees so much more. Whether or not those expectations are accurate—who knows?! I’ll tell you—God does.

Well, I hope you got your package today. I hope the cookies are still delicious. Love you so much! So proud of you.

Love, Mom

Hailey,
We are still at the Forsberg’s playing games. I am sad we had to say goodbye, but so proud of you for your success and heart this week. I love you so much. You are doing great things. Have a good nights’ rest. And remember we are praying for you every single day. We will keep cheering you on. Remember that we are beside you even when we aren’t physically with you. But more importantly, God is with you. Goodnight sweetheart. Watch for some fun videos tomorrow.

Love, Mom