"IN HIS STRENGTH I CAN DO ALL THINGS"

Dearest Family! 

It has been an exciting week here in the Texas San Antonio Mission! The fields are being harvested, the days are getting brighter, the skies clearer, and the sun gets hotter and hotter!!! 

Debbie and Randy are doing well. Debbie's cancer treatments are overwhelming to her but I have never seen a woman more dedicated to the gospel than her. She is reading every day, she is coming to church every week, bringing her husband along, even though she feels sick and would love to just sleep all hours of the day! She is an outstanding example! 

Destynee and Brandon are a couple of youth we are now teaching! (brother and sister) I’ll send a picture. Their parents are converts to the church, however, the kids were not too interested when the parents joined and chose not to be baptized. But now they are planning to be baptized on June 14th! Destynee has been coming to church the past couple of weeks and Brandon wants to receive the priesthood!

Just last night, as we stepped out of the car, we saw an older couple just walking out of their home named Carol and Dave. We asked if they knew the Menchaca family across the street who are members of the church. They responded with a huge smile and shared story after story about how wonderful the Menchaca’s are! AND, turns out Carol and Dave are the best missionaries in town. Carol was telling us story after story about how friends have mentioned negative things about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and she corrects them immediately. She was just in awe telling one story after the other about how fully the Menchaca's have lived their faith. She mentioned they will do anything and everything for anyone at any time. No Joke. How great of an influence this family has been to every neighbor we have talked with in the neighborhood. (They know EVERYONE on the whole block lol) What an impact they have had by their example. 

MY NEW COMPANION: Sister Iverson! She is absolutely outstanding……dedicated to the work, always, always trying to improve, always wanting to do more and more every day. And a bonus mother, she cleans exactly like you. I think this is only the second person I have met in my life like that. What a compliment to you mother! Sister Iverson is from Preston, ID and is greatly needed in this ward. There is much, much, much work to do because of your prayers every day! Seriously, there is not time to see everyone and talk with everyone we want to. 

Well if you have made it this far in the email you have made it to the BEST PART EVER!!!! THE TEXAS SAN ANTONIO TEMPLE!!!

Saturday morning we woke up early to attend the temple with the San Antonio 9th Ward youth! Many people were also in attendance…… Sister Schrader (recent convert, mother of Destynee), Bill (recent convert, friends of Sister Uminski in our ward), Edgar (recent convert as of March), Parsons and Kean (recents converts of Sister Iverson in her previous ward) AND Bridget Wilson (recent convert as of May 10th!) WOW absolutely spectacular. I will send a picture. 

It was the most incredible day of my life! Tears filled my eyes as I sat above the font watching Bridget do proxy baptisms for ancestors of one of the witnesses sitting above her by the font. I imagined the space around the font filled with those people who were part of the preparation for this…..those who indexed the names of the ancestors, those who searched online, those who requested the names, the temple workers, Sister Boster (who introduced the church to S. Wilson), Bishop Updike (who interviewed Bridget for her recommend), and most of all Bridget, for making the decision to first act and be baptized. WOW! Can you imagine? Bridget leaned over to me in the temple and said, “now I understand what Sister Boster was talking about when she mentioned the feeling in the temple, and how incredible and amazing it is. I am so grateful she introduced this to me and invited me to come and listen, and come to church. I want everyone to know about this. I feel so blessed to be right here and being witnessing this!”  WOW!  The whole ride home she talked about her ancestors and all those individuals who she wants to share the gospel with now. As we were driving out of the temple parking lot super slow, she says, "I just don’t want to leave, I want to stay here all day." We pointed to the temple store and asked if she wanted to go look, she quickly said, “yes!”  then she turned the car around to go park. Lol….. I could share more but my time is limited. Just know that this is REAL. The temple allows us to be impacted this way. I know it does. I have felt it, and Destynee felt it. We walked around the grounds outside the temple while her mother was inside doing baptisms. She felt the great power of the temple! 

All can say in my heart is "Because I Have Been Given Much....I too MUST GIVE." 

I love each one of you sincerely and so deeply with all my heart! 

Best Wishes to each of you this week. Thank you again for all your prayers and thoughts. Love, Sister Davis