"Here's my heart, oh take and seal it"

Louisiana has the most beautiful skies

Thug district

Classy district

Hey y'all! This week has been one for the books. There have been tears, laughter, hard days, miracles, and everything in between. Good news: Sister Amezcua and I are staying in Opelousas! This week is transfers which is why I am emailing on a Tuesday instead of a Monday. On transfer week we proselyte on Monday and have preparation day on Tuesday. Half of the district is leaving which is sad, but I am overjoyed that Sister Amezcua and I are staying together. She is an incredible missionary and I love her to death. I feel so blessed to be able to work with her for another six weeks! 

One of my favorite things is when our investigators and recent converts share the gospel with others. Haley, one of my favorite people ever said the sweetest thing this week. She was baptized a couple weeks ago and now she is excited about bringing her boyfriend Ezelle to church. She told us that he is going to be baptized and that she "is going to change his whole life". She said she has been so much happier since her baptism and she has had a greater desire to make good choices. She wants him to be as happy as she is. What a sweet girl! We're really excited about teaching Ezelle. 

We had a zone training meeting (ZTM) this week. It is always wonderful to hear from our leaders about how to be better missionaries. I learned a lot about being courageous. The Zone Leaders called me the night before ZTM and asked me to sing. Of course I said yes, but I was terrified! I threw something together really quick and went to ZTM knowing I had no idea what I was doing. I love to be prepared so this was pretty hard for me. But I did it! I just totally relied on God to help me get up there. I sang "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing".

I especially love the last verse of that song: "Prone to wander, Lord I feel it/ Prone to leave the God I love/ Here's my heart, oh take and seal it / seal it for thy courts above". It helps me remember that none of us are perfect. We are all going to fall; we are all going to wander in one way or another. But if we feel it and we truly love God we will always come back. We will keep trying to do His will because we know that He loves us and knows what will ultimately make us the happiest. If we trust in Him, He will be our "light in the wilderness" (1 Nephi 17:13) and lead us to happiness. The light might not always be bright enough to see the entire path ahead of us - sometimes it is only bright enough for us to take a couple steps at a time. But God promises us that if we look to Him He will help us find our way. This gospel is so good! God loves us more than we can even imagine.

Life can be tough, but all things can be made right through the atonement of Jesus Christ. So keep on trying, keep on loving, and keep on keeping on. God will lead us if we trust Him. I love y'all! Have a fantastic week!

All my love,

Sister Thomas

Sister Amezcua cried when she found a dead lizard on the floor. She
named himLarkin and we had a funeral (love this sweet sister)