Merry Christmas!

Dear Precious Gems,

This week has been a week of stretching and growth and such wonderful blessings we have we received this week.

A small cool miracle that happened this week with a new investigator. As a little background story, there is a big TV in the big city here in Tirana that shows a small segment of A Savior Is Born on the screen. At the end has our number. Well, this week a girl saw it and contacted the number. So through the process of figuring out where she lived we ended up receiving her number and being able to get in contact with her. She said she wanted to get an appointment right away with us. We ended up finding the time-window to fitting her in and meeting with her at the church.

I testify that the Lord is so grateful when we give the time and attention to him through prayer. The moment that we begin our prayers with sincere and humble hearts, we can feel his presence right at the very beginning  of them. I know that I felt him with me as I commune with him everyday. I am so blessed to have the relationship that I do with my father in heaven and I know that it is only the beginning to a beautiful and eternal friendship.

I know that with the lesson with this woman was the first time she truly knew how to pray with her father in heaven. And that she knew of how much she mattered to him.

I testify that I know that we EACH MATTER TO HIM!!!

I know that He gave his son for us. I know that he is very mindful of us and all that we have to face every single day. The Lord is in all the details of our lives. I know that He LIVES!

I know that each of you matter to him. Like it says in Abraham 3:22-23:

22 Now the Lord had shown unto me, Abraham, the intelligences that were organized before the world was; and among all these there were many of the noble and great ones;

 23 And God saw these souls that they were good, and he stood in the midst of them, and he said: These I will make my rulers; for he stood among those that were spirits, and he saw that they were good; and he said unto me: Abraham, thou art one of them; thou wast chosen before thou wast born.

I know that our names can be in the place of Abraham and have it still be of the same value.

BECAUSE YOU MATTER!!!

YOU MATTER TO HIM!

YOU ARE HIS CHILD!!

AND HE HAS SENT YOU HERE AT THIS TIME FOR THOSE THAT YOU COME IN CONTACT WITH. "BECAUSE YOU WERE CHOSEN BEFORE THOU WAST BORN."

I am so grateful for all of your examples and all that you do everyday. I can testify and say that it is of great value. KEEP GOING!

Love, Motra Bezas

Some more awesome Albanians!

No pday on December 21st...

(We did not receive a p-day email on December 21st because we soon would be Skyping with Motra Bezas on Christmas Day! Woot for modern-day technology!)

There Is a God in the Heavens

Dec 14

Dear Precious Gems,

I just want to testify right away that I know that there is a God in the Heavens. I know that he is our Father in Heaven. I testify that we are his children. I know that he was and is and always will be mindful of us.

I felt witness of it over and over again, that our Father in Heaven LOVES US!! I know it with all my heart. I have felt it over and over again as I pray, I feel His presence there. I know He listens to our every single prayer. Even when we believe he is not listening. He is ESPECIALLY listening then. Satan wants us to believe otherwise, but our Father in Heaven is listening. I know that he is constantly wanting to hear from us but most importantly speak to us. 

That is why we give him time in our prayers to let him communicate with us. Sometimes it comes in that moment. Sometimes it comes when we are reading a verse or speaking with someone or an impression or a thought. No matter how it comes. IT COMES. That is a promise we have received. When we communicate with him all that we are going through, we are able to receive the blessings.

This week I saw so many miracles and today I wished I had more time to express them all. But I will share one...

We were in a lesson with two wonderful people. They are recent converts and we were talking about the Plan more in depth about The Millennium. I remember that as Sister D was testifying at one point the spirit came in super strongly and testified of what she said to be true. It was at that moment the one person looked to me and said:

"That is so interesting! As she has been saying these things, I felt that I already knew all of this and I know what she has said to be true."

I looked at him and told him with great joy. "What you have felt right now is the spirit confirming what you have heard to be true personally."

He looked at me with great happiness and said the sweetest answer. "That's COOL!"

I know that we can constantly receive answers; if we are listening with our minds and our hearts, we can feel the spirit baring witness to us that we know it to be true.

I love this gospel. I love it with all my heart. It really hit me today the thought that how could I not have served a mission? I have been so blessed and am blessed everyday to gain a deeper relationship with my Father in Heaven and Savior.

I testify that it can be this way for everyone. If they give the time to him to speak with us.

Love you all!

Motra Bezas

Another beautiful city in Albania

On an exchange with Sister F, yet one more terrific sister serving in that mission

61st pday email from Albania!

Dear Precious Gems,

This week was FULL of Miracles and just as FULL of opposition. I know this is the Lord's work. We are his children. And Satan knows this. He is doing all he can every day to tear us down because he knows of the Goodness we can accomplish and the potential that we each have. I know that before this life, we all knew each other so well. Because we were all brothers and sisters before this life. So because of this, Satan knows us so well. Like our Savior, Jesus Christ. He knows us inside and out and so when we face adversity, we can know without a doubt we are being tested and tried to the very last doubt and weakness we have within us.

This week, I saw this. I was a full witness of it. All the lies of feeling not good enough and making me believe that I couldn't accomplish the things the Lord needed me to do. But I remember that day when I was being stretched, I was given the eyes to see that this was Satan and that I was called of God to do his work here In Albania and right now in my area with Sister D as STLs.

Once I was able to see that, I was able to begin to see that the Savior was with me. That everything I was going through at this time was part of his plan for me in his work to become the best child of God I can become.

The whole experience reminded me of the song, When Faith Endures:

I will not doubt, I will not fear;

God's love and strength are always near.

His promised gift helps me to find

An inner strength and peace of mind.

I give the Father willingly

My trust, my prayers, humility.

His Spirit guides; his love assures

That fear departs when faith endures.

I testify that all our fears and doubts we have, will depart as we have faith in our Lord and Savior.

This week one of our lovely investigators was able to be baptized. She has faced a lot of adversity in getting baptized, but the Lord opened the way for her to be baptized this weekend. Her testimony that she gave was one of the most sweetest testimonies I have heard. Something that truly touched me at her baptism was her relationship with her best friend. She as a member was there with her all along the way as she was being taught and even gave a talk about baptism on her special day at her Baptism. 

Her testimony was so powerful and the most touching thing was her closing remark. "We will able to live in the Celestial Kingdom for all eternity after this life together."

I testify that this is His work. We are the broken vessels that He brings forth His miracles so that we can all live with our Father in Heaven again! I testify that I know this to be true. I know that He loves us. I know that he sent his Son to the earth, so that the way could be open for us to returning to him. 

It is through Our Savior, Jesus Christ. He is the light, The Life, and the Way to returning to our Father. 

I know this Christmas season, we can truly gain a deeper testimony of our Savior that he Lives, as we study more about his life in the scriptures and in all that he did for us. Something that Sister D and I said in our Zone Training was that the Savior continually gives and that this Christmas season it can be a gift we can give to others through service and looking outward.

I know that as we strive to become more like the Savior every day, we will begin to truly see as He sees. 

Thank you so much for all that you do!! Remember, You MATTER to HIM!

Motra Bezas

Some pictures from her beloved Albania!