Hi Mom!!
  How are you doing? It sounds like your week was great! Did you get a
big snow storm this last week? That's awesome that you are ready for
Christmas. I'm going to try and send a package home today. There isn't
going to be anything big in it but I'll have some Christmas presents
in there. As for the details on skype. We are going to do it at the
ward mission leaders home. We are going to use his username because I
don't remember the one I created before I left. Can you give me the
one you are going to use and I'll try to find yours. I'll give you the
one I am going to use next week. I think I'll be skyping home around
9AM your time. My companion is going to do it around 8AM so I'll just
do it after her. Plan on skyping at 9AM and I'll let you know if it
changes next week!!
  We did get lots of snow! It is beautiful!!! Church was canceled
yesterday so my companion and I went shoveling all day! It was much
more productive than tracting. People were so happy for the help. They
were really curious about who we were and what we were doing shoveling
for free. We shoveled out about 10 cars and we shoveled 3 driveways.
It was great! My companion is really sore today. I'm not as sore as I
thought I would be. There was one man that we helped that just got out
of the hospital and he seems really interested in learning about the
gospel. He said that he is Catholic but that he is kind of searching
for something else. He was very grateful for the help. He tried to
give me a hug and I stepped back and told him that I can't get hugs.
He said he understood. It was really funny! My companion doesn't like
the snow so I told her that I would like it enough for her and me
both. I was so grateful for the service that we were able to provide
for people. Everyone that we talked to wondered why we would go around
helping people. It was awesome to tell them about our missions and the
gospel!
  We contacted a man named Roger this week. We met with him, his wife
Kasey, and her brother Tommy. They had so many questions for us. It
was awesome!! Roger knew some members back in California. He had some
friends that grew up in the church and they invited him to church a
lot. They all had so many good questions. I was amazed at how many of
the Articles of Faith my companion and I used to answer their
questions. We used more than half of them. My companion was amazed at
the questions they were asking. She said she her mind would go
completely blank and then I would start answering it. I know that it
was not me that was answering their questions. The Spirit was guiding
my words and saying what needed to be said. I love it when the Spirit
answers their questions because the answers come in such a way that
they understand it. The Lord knows what people need and how to address
those needs. I know that I am just an instrument in the hands of the
Lord and I love it!!!
  I had a meeting up in Manchester this week and President Stoker was
talking to us about Christ and his birth. He also talked about Mary.
He read Luke 2:15-19. He focused a lot on verse 19. He mentioned that
Mary knew all that the Savior would do in this life. She knew that she
would watch Him die for all mankind. She knew that He would be
rejected by men. She also knew all the good that would come from Him.
I can't even imagine the strength she had to have to go through all
that. Mary was an amazing woman!!! I have been thinking about how
Christ is the only way that we can be cleansed from our sins and so I
was studying grace and mercy this week. What is grace? What is mercy?
Why are grace and mercy important? In "True to the Faith" it says that
every blessing we receive is an act of mercy. Blessings are things
that we can not bring about ourselves so that is an act of mercy from
God. In 2 Nephi 25:23 it says that we will be saved by grace, "after
all we can do." What does that mean? One of the biggest things that I
thought of is being reconciled to God. That includes repenting, doing
His will, turning and trusting Him. The gospel is really simple, we
just have to give up what we want and do what he wants. I was thinking
about how grace helps me as a missionary. It is God's grace that leads
me to people who are prepared to hear the gospel. I don't know who or
where people are that ready for the gospel but the Lord does. He will
guide me where I need to go because He knows who is ready to change
their hearts. I have to do all that I can to allow myself to be worthy
of His guidance. It is essential for me to pray for that guidance
every day. I love the gospel and I know that Christ is the ONLY way to
eternal happiness with our family and our Heavenly Father!! I love you
so much!!! Have a great week!!!
  Love,
   Sister Griffin