Hi Mom!!!

  It sounds like you had a busy week. I'm glad you were able to see Aunt LaRae. Sister Allen's daughter is doing good. I am definitely going to see the Allens when they come visit Utah. They are going to be staying at Wolf Creek up the canyon. 

  This week was great!!! We went to contact some less actives with our ward mission leader this week. We found a couple people who still live in our boundaries and we found a couple that let us in and wanted to visit with us. This couple went inactive a long time ago. They were active before the church changed to the block schedule. They both have different reasons for leaving. We were able to share a message with them and we were able to find out they weren't interested in Home or Visiting teachers but they said they would be open to our ward mission leader and his wife stopping by.  Our ward mission leader is amazing!!!! He helps us all the time! 

  Yesterday one of the talks in church was about pure religion and how we need to live with charity and love. Sister Miner, who gave the talk, shared an experience about how she learned how to be more charitable the hard way. She was in her car once and saw someone with a sign asking for help and she had the thought to help him and she decided to ignore it. She came up with every excuse not to help this man. She said that as she drove away she saw someone in her rear view mirror give the man some money. She said that her heart sank. I could tell that it was powerful experience for her. It made me realize that Heavenly Father has asked us to love and serve our neighbors...everyone around us are our neighbors. 

  We met with Ann this week. She is really struggling seeing God's hand in her life. She is going through some hard things right now and she doesn't feel like the Gospel is helping her. We invited her to look for one thing she could be grateful for each day and she decided to do that. She came to church this week. We have tried showing her and testifying to her how the gospel helps us deal with challenges and doesn't always take our problems away. We are hoping that we can help her see the strength that the gospel has brought her. 

  In my studies this week I was studying the enabling power of the Atonement. I read Elder Bednar's talk from this last conference. It was so good!!!! As I was studying the talk I really thought about how the Lord doesn't take away our burdens but that He strengthens us enough to bear them. When I think of heavy loads that people have to carry I often think of Job. I began reading the book of Job and right from the beginning he had a lot of hard trials but he never gave up. He trusted the Lord. He was able to testify of the Lord too (Job 19:25). We all have to have strength in the Lord. I love you!!! Have a great week!!!!

  Love,

   Sister Griffin

Hey Mom!!!!!

  How have you been?? Those pictures were from Wally and Hope Heath. They are a couple that we have been teaching. They are awesome!!! Wally seems ready to live the gospel but his wife is very Catholic. Their daughter is a member and has been for a while! They are awesome!!! As far as the luncheon...I'm not sure what to do. We could wait until all of the church meetings are done and have it after. Do whatever you think is best. 

  This week has been awesome!!!! 
We met with all of our investigators this week and we really focused on the importance of church. Four of our investigators were at church. It was great to see all of them there. The Spirit was there so strong!!!! We were praying that they felt it. I'm sure they did. We had a wonderful lesson with Kathey. We talked to her about the Plan of Salvation and she really has come to learn for herself that she has found truth. The hardest part for her is knowing how to act on the answers that she receives. She isn't is the Methuen ward boundaries and she doesn't want to go to the other ward. She feels like Methuen is home. I'm sure she will figure out that the truth is the same wherever she goes. We were a little nervous that Kathey would stop meeting with us since I was leaving but she is still going to learn the gospel!!! That was a huge blessing!!! 

  We were at Wally and Hope's this week. They fed us dinner. While we were eating their daughter that is a member called. She didn't know we were going to be there. She talked to us. She is so awesome!!!! We talked with Wally and Hope about the Restoration. I know the gospel can help them. 

  Sister Westwood decided to throw a going away party for a couple in ward that is moving and me. It was so much fun! I included some pictures. I hope you enjoy them. It was a great way to see everyone all in the same place. 

  This week I have studied about diligence. I love what it says in Preach My Gospel "When we are diligent, we find joy and satisfaction in our work." That is so true!!!! When I am working hard I have been happier and more joyful! President Stoker talks a lot about how missionaries that work hard have the best success. He spoke in our ward the other day and he said that missionaries that learned how to work before their missions tend to struggle less on their missions. Thanks for teaching me how to work hard before my mission Mom!!!!! I love what it says in Moroni 9:6. We are here to labor diligently for the Lord! See you on Wednesday!!! I love you!!!!!

  Love,

    Sister Griffin

Picture 1- Sister Westwood and me. She is the one that threw the going away party. She is awesome!!!!

Picture 2- Last lesson with Kathey....Sister Gretter, me, Kathey, and Sister Tarawhiti

Picture 3-Sister Aucoin took us to breakfast this morning with the Aldrichs. Yummy!!!! 

 Hi Mom!!!!

  You had a very busy week! That's awesome that Elizabeth and Ammon were able to sing together and that Megan played for them. Did you have the family over for Father's day or did you just spend time with the Barnes?

  This week has been good. President and Sister Stoker came to our church yesterday. They spoke on Fathers. They did a really good job. President Stoker talked about things that Father's can teach us. It made me think of how dad was a great example of a hard worker. I started thinking of the things that dad and you have taught me. It was a tender moment for me. President Stoker also did the lesson during Relief Society. They combined the last meeting since President Stoker was there. It was awesome! He talked about how much more productive missionary work is when the members are helping us. The ward was very involved in the discussion. The ward here is wonderful at getting to know us missionaries. President Stoker told me that my exit interview is going to be the week before I leave. He is doing zone interviews for our zone on the 24th and he decided that he wants to do my exit interview then. It will be weird to have it then but that's ok.

  We taught Kathey this week. She had decided to take a break from meeting with us but now she wants to meet with us again. She was going to a Baptist church recently but she doesn't feel the same Spirit there that she feels at our meetings. We started teaching her the Restoration this week and we ended up talking more about truth. When we first started meeting with her she would tell us that she was starving for truth we asked her if she still felt like she was feeling that way. She said, "No, I'm not starving for it like I was." We then shared with her John 4 about the living water. After reading that to her, I looked at her and said, " You found the truth Kathey." She said, "Maybe I have." She then opened up a lot more. She knows the truth now she just needs to act on her feelings.

  So funny story this week...Sister Tarawhiti and I go running every morning and on Friday morning we did the usually got ready to go running. I grabbed the keys and we headed out the door. Not even 50 feet from our apartment I realize that I grabbed the car key instead of the apartment key. We were locked out. It was sprinkling. We used our neighbors phone to call the manager and they wanted to charge us 100 bucks to have them come open the door because no one was in the office yet. We decided to wait until 9am for someone to get into the office. We decided to run 2 miles to our ward mission leaders house so we could get showered and be ready to go. We had an appointment planned with them at 10 and they were supposed to pick us up at 9:30 anyways. Let's just say they were surprised to see us there. It was an experience that I don't want to repeat.

  This week I have been studying about how simple the message of the Restoration is. We have truth again. God has always revealed the truth to His children. He has shown that pattern of love and concern for us. He loves us and so He has revealed truth to us! I love how simple the gospel is!! It is so true!! I love you so much!!! Have a wonderful week!!!

 Love,

   Sister Griffin

Picture 1-Sister Tarawhiti, Sibel, and me

Picture 2- Sister Tarawhiti, Ashley, and me. Enjoy!!!

Hi Mom!!!! 

  I'm sorry to hear about Jack but you are right he is in a better place. Are you doing a funeral for him? Thanks for signing me up to help with the Ogden Temple Open House. Are you getting the hang of your computer yet? I'm glad that you got the quilts done. The kids are not out of school yet. Some kids are in school until June 20...I think. I haven't received any flight information yet...have you? 

  This week has been good. I missed getting your e-mails last week. I did do a painting for Relief Society. I don't know if you want to see it...I'm definitely not an artist. We were tracting the other day and there was a lady that let us in. She was so nice. She has a memory loss problem but her husband was nice too. We shared with them how the the gospel blesses our families. They told us we were welcome to come back and visit again. The Spirit was so strong. It was an awesome experience. We will definitely try to go back and see them. 

  We had an amazing lesson with Sister Cathcart. We had planned to finish teaching her another lesson that we had started the week before but the Spirit led us another way. She was really feeling down and so we talked to her about the Spirit and how it gives us comfort and peace. We shared John 14:26-27 with her. She told us that she needed that because it brought back a lot of memories of how the Spirit worked before in her life. She said it pricked her heart. I know that the Spirit is the real teacher!! We don't know what people need but I know that the Spirit knows what each person needs. 

  In my studies this week I have been studying in 3 Nephi. I was in chapter 24 and I was thinking about the Refiner's fire and Fuller's soap. I had heard of the Refiner's fire before and knew what that was but for some reason I always forget what the Fuller's soap is. In the Bible dictionary it says that the Fuller's responsibility was to clean and whiten fabrics. Christ refines us or tries and teaches us and then we become pure and clean. We can only become the people that Christ needs us to be if we allow Him to purify us! Sorry this is so short!!! I love you!!! Have a great week!!! 

 Love,

   Sister Griffin

On Mon, Jun 2, 2014 at 6:48 AM, griffincru@juno.com <griffincru@juno.com> wrote:

Hi Missy Callee,

 

I am having trouble getting to the point to e-mail you.  I hope I have it right this time.

 

How are you doing?  Have you had a good week?  I received your hand-written letter.  It was good to hear from you.  Sounds like you have had some good teaching moments.

 

This past week was a very busy one for me.

 

Aunt Diane, Aunt Mary, and I went to Idaho for the Romrell funerals.  It was a beautiful funeral.  Tuesday night we went to the Rexburg Temple, and on Wednesday morning we went to the Idaho Falls Temple.  I saw a lady there that used to live in the 84th Ward.  Her name is Beverly Evans.  I don't know if you remember her or not, but she worked with me in the Young Women with Shauna for a short time, then she moved out to Harrisville.  In talking with her I found out she lived in the Romrell's Ward.  This is such a small world.  It seems no matter where I go I meet people I know or knows someone I know.  We really enjoyed our overnight trip together.

 

On Friday, I got a call telling me that Jack wasn't doing very well because he had a heart attack.  After several phone calls and moving him to a different facility I got a call at church telling me that he was hours from passing away.  He was in a coma so Aunt Mary and I headed down there.  On my way I called his daughter Linda to tell her and she wanted to go with us.  We picked her up and went down there.  Diane came in her own car and met us there.  We spent several hours with him just visiting and learning about each other.  We came home around 7:30 -Jack still breathing deeply.  I got a call this morning at 4:15 telling me he had passed away.  I am sad, yet happy at the same time.  He has wanted to die for a long time.

 

"D" got your car inspected this week.  It passed with flying colors.  "D" said he is amazed that that little car hardly puts out any carbon considering how old it is.  It's been a good car. 

 

All the kids are out of school here now.  They all were very ready for school to be done.  Are the kids out of school there yet?

 

Jennifer and Lauren are enjoying Kellie Allen on Facebook.  They feel like they have a close connection to you in talking with her.  They mentioned that you painted a picture recently at Relief Society.  Save it - I would love to see it when you get home.

 

I put you on the list to help at the Ogden Temple Open House.  We are all getting excited about the temple opening soon.

 

Robyn and Holger Hansen moved out this week.  They are living in Layton for a short time until their house is finished.  A single man moved in their house - an inactive member of the church.

 

Well, I will close for now.  Take care and I love you and miss you a ton!!!!

                                                Love, Mom

Hi Mom,

  How are you??? I'm not sure when I will be sending my stuff home but I will let you know. I haven't received my flight info yet. I'm glad that you got it. You sound like you were busy all week. I remembered that it was the two year anniversary of Dad's death. Sister Allen got me a little thing to let me know that she was thinking of me. She is so sweet!!! My companion was really sweet too! How is the stuff with Jack's stuff going? Did you get it all figured out?

  This week has been kind of a roller coaster. One of our investigators told us that she didn't want to meet anymore but she is still meeting with us. She found out some medical news that threw her for a loop and so she got really upset. We met with her with some members that were able to help her a lot. They were able to relate to her on a level that Sister Tarawhiti and I weren't able to. She is still having a hard time but she came to all three hours of church yesterday. She is doing pretty good. We started teaching an older couple this week. They have learned from missionaries before. Their daughter is a member down in Florida and she is so excited that we are meeting with her parents. They had a lot of questions for us. Their names are Wally and Hope. Hope hasn't really opened up to any missionaries and she did to us. Her daughter was so surprised. We sang her some songs and she loved it! Wally loves the church and feels something when he comes to church. They are amazing!!! There was a less active this week that is dealing with the loss of her step dad. She told us that she is angry at God. I was able to relate to her and testify of the power that can come when we rely on the Lord in those situations. She told us we could come back this week. Hopefully we can continue to help her.

  We do go tracting. We try to contact less actives, former investigators, and potential investigators and then we knock on the doors around their houses. We actually met a really nice man this week when we were tracting. He was telling us about why he thought it was important to go to church. He likes church that requires a lot of participation and so we invited him to come to our church. He said that he might try it out. We talked with him for about 20 minutes. He was awesome!!!

  This week in my studies I was studying the Word of Wisdom for one of our investigators. I love how the Word of Wisdom is for us spiritually and physically. There is a quote in Preach My Gospel that I love...it says, "The Spirit does not get our attention by shouting or shaking us with a heavy hand.Rather it whispers. It caresses so gently that if we are preoccupied we may not feel it at all. (No wonder that the Word of Wisdom was revealed to us, for how could the drunkard or the addict feel such a voice?)" That is from Boyd K. Packer. It is so true!! We have to be listening if we want to really grasp what the Spirit is telling us. I love how the Spirit works!!! I love you! Have a great week!!!!

  Love,

    Sister Griffin

 

Hey Mom!

  It was so good to talk to you yesterday! All of you looked so good! I wasn't able to get onto USU's website but hopefully I can next time I'm on the computer. Mr. Weick's son came out the November before me. I have seen him before. We have 7 missionaries in the Methuen ward. There are 4 elders and 3 sisters. It is a lot of fun! We only have five stakes in our whole mission. Mom, Sister Allen appreciates so much you going to her Grandpa's viewing. She still tells people that you went to it. She thought you were so sweet to do that! Who are you thinking is ready for the missionaries?

  This week was great! I loved going to the temple so much! This week we taught our investigator, Ann. She is wanting to quit smoking but she is really struggling with it. We had a lesson to prepare her for the quit smoking program. This program is supposed to help her quit in 7 days. My companions and I are praying that she sticks to it. Ann is funny...she has dolls that are very lifelike. She dresses them and buys them clothes like they are real babies. She loves them like they are real kids. She is so awesome! 

   Yesterday, Vicki, a recent convert spoke for the first time. She got baptized in February and she really enjoyed being able to speak. Her sister joined the church in November and then she did. Their parents still haven't joined but they came to hear her speak. She did such a good job. She talked about how mothers fit into the plan of salvation. It was awesome! Our Bishop spoke and he talked about how God establishes His work through two -hoods...Motherhood and Priesthood. I thought that was awesome! God definitely works through those two hoods. I have seen it in my life. I am so blessed to have you as my family!! I love all of you so much!!!

  Check out this awesome motherhood video on mormon.org/motherhood. It is amazing!!! Thanks for all that you do for me Mom!!!!! We had zone meeting this week and I have been really pondering about something that President Stoker said about listening. He gave us ten things that will help us listen better to those we are teaching. I loved the last one. He said, "Listen for their ideas and not just their words." It is so important as missionaries to listen to what people are trying to say and not just what we want to hear. I have come to realize how important it is for people to be heard. People will tell us what is going on in their lives if we show them we care and just listen. The Spirit knows their concerns and so I have to do my part in listening to the Spirit. The questions that I ask as a missionary can be the key that helps them open up or the key that closes them. Questions are so critical. I know that people are searching for the truth and that the Lord is preparing their hearts. I love you!! Have a great week!!!

  Love,

   Sister Griffin

Hi Missy Callee,

 

Oh Callee, it was so good to talk to you.  You look good.  I hope you have had a good week.  

 

I was amazed that you teach so much during the week.  How many missionaries are in the Methuen Ward?  WE have one set of full-time missionaries in our whole stake.  The goal for the missionaries in our Stake  is 20 lessons per set of missionaries.  Our Wared has to find 3 people for the missionaries to teach every week.  I was supposed to find one lady for last week, but I forgot.  I have a name, but I just have to contact her.  The Bishop reminded me to call her on my way out of church today.

 

I talked to Aunt LaRae this morning.  They're doing okay.  They were having family over and grilling ribs.

 

The Ewing campout at Parker Park for Memorial Day weekend is coming up.  I can't believe it's that time of year again already.

 

The Barnes are reading random scriptures as a family right now while I am e-mailing.  I love to do this with them.  Even Hannah and Sam do it - repeating words after they're coached.  

 

Rachael just went to bed and she hugged everyone in the room.  She seems so old for her age.

 

Were you able to look at your registration of classes for USU?

 

We were talking about Mr. Weick's son that is in your same mission.  Didn't you say you had seen him before?  When does he come home?  We couldn't remember if he entered the mission field before you or after you.

 

Well, I will close for now.  Take care - I love you and miss you so much.

                                                                                      Love, Mom

Hi Mom!!

 The temple was amazing!!! I loved it so much!! The temple is about 30 minutes away from us. I was going to send pictures but we don't have a long time to write. As for Mother's Day. I was thinking we could skype around 7:00pm(my time) which would be 5:00pm your time. I hope that works for you. We are skyping from Sister Allen's house. If you have any questions about it you can give her a call at 801-781-0131. What username do I need to call? I'm excited to talk to you on Sunday. I was hoping to get you something sent off for Mother's Day but I wasn't able to get anything...sorry! Thanks for your letter! Thanks for getting me signed up for classes. It's official I'm coming home July 2. President Stoker has already made the changes. 

  This week has been awesome! I wish I could tell you all about it but I am don't have a lot of time. I loved being able to go to the temple. It was so peaceful! I just love the symbolism that is in the temple! Everything has a purpose and a meaning. Life seems so simple after being in the temple!! It was a wonderful experience. Sister Allen took us down there and the Aldrichs came too. The Aldrichs just got back from their mission in Fresno California. Sister Tarawhiti and I were the only ones that went. Sister Fratcher had already been so she stayed with another companionship of sisters while we went. The Spirit in the temple is amazing!! The Spirit there is so special. I have missed the temple and it was so nice to be able to go. I love you!!! I'm excited to talk to you on Sunday!

  Love,

    Sister Griffin

On Tue, May 6, 2014 at 10:29 PM, griffincru@juno.com <griffincru@juno.com> wrote:

Hi, Missy Callee, 

 

How was the temple?  How far is the Boston Temple from where you are?  Do you have to make appointments for that temple?

 

I am really excited about getting your e-mail tomorrow.  Remember to tell us about Mother's Day and your school stuff.

 

How are you doing?  Have you had a good week?  Did all three of you go to the temple?  

 

I am going to send a hand written letter, but it won't come until Saturday.

 

I had Family Home Evening last night.  It was good.  Today was game day.  It was fun, too.

 

Liz had a good time at the Prom on Saturday.

 

Sunday I went to Calvin's for dinner.  Mary had honey lime enchiladas.  Brayden and I played Yahtzee afterwards.  Then I had a little nap.

 

My birthday was good.  Lauren and Mary each made a cake and everyone came over for ice cream and cake.  Sam helped me blow out my candles.  Tricia gave me a small crockpot (at my request; Lauren and Eric gave me a book (Women and the Priesthood)' Mary gave me money' and Diane gave me the orgreenic fry pan' and Matt and Natausha gave me a cute card.  I appreciated your card, Missy.  Thank you so much for sending it along with the sweet note.

 

Ammon had a band concert tonight.  Shawn has one on Thursday.

 

Well, I'll close for now.  Take care.  I love you so much and miss you, too.

Hi Mom!

  How are you doing? Happy Birthday this week Mom!! I was going to send you something for your birthday but I might just wait until Mother's Day! I got your letter about school....you're right I need to get back into school. I talked to my mission president and he is going to let me come home the transfer early. So I could come home at the beginning of July. That isn't final yet but it is in the works. It is a hard decision to make. I don't want to end my mission any earlier than I have to but I think that is how it is going to work best. It has been something that I have been praying long and hard about. It hasn't been an easy decision for me to make. I don't know about the skyping yet for Mother's Day...sorry! I won't be e-mailing next Monday because Sister Tarawhiti and I are going to the temple. Our p-day will be moved to Wednesday so I'll e-mail then. 

  This week has been good! We had a wonderful lesson with a less active that we are teaching. She is blind and Sister Tarawhiti's mom sent her an object lesson called Sensing the Savior. It is an object lesson with music and using all of your senses except sight. We did it with Sue and she loved it. She said that it was one of the most powerful things she ever felt. We had a member of the ward there with us and she testified how she has felt of the Savior's love. She talked about feeling the Savior's love for her. I know that we all felt too! It amazes me how much love the Savior has for us and all that He was willing to do for us. We are so blessed to know Him.
  We had another lesson with a less active this week. We talked about how to look forward with Faith. She told us that she felt guilty for hanging on to things that she shouldn't. The member that we took with us talked about how she feels like that a lot but then she remembers all the stuff that she can do and the things that she is doing right. She talked about praying and reading and how those help her remember the good things that she is doing. It was an amazing lesson!

  We had stake conference this weekend. We were able to go to the Saturday night session and also the Sunday session. Both were fantastic! The people in the stake are wonderful! The Stake President is wonderful! He talked about changing our attitudes from "I can't because I'm a Mormon" to "I won't because I am a Mormon." Saying, "I won't because I am a Mormon" is a statement of who we are. Saying, I can't because I'm a Mormon is more of an excuse. He talked about that Saturday night and on Sunday he talked about how Spiritual gravity can pull us down and make us become more like the natural man. Something that the stake president said, "Submission to God is unnatural for the natural man, but is natural for the saint." I love that because in Mosiah 3:19 it tells us how to become a saint and submit ourselves to God. It was a very uplifting meeting. I love you!! I hope you have a great week!! Enjoy Women's Conference!!

  Love,

    Sister Griffin

On Sun, Apr 27, 2014 at 6:05 PM, griffincru@juno.com <griffincru@juno.com> wrote:

Hi Missy Callee,

How are you doing?  Have you had a good week?  I love to hear of the miracles you take part in.

I have some exciting news!  We now have dates of the Ogden Temple Open House and Dedication.  .  The Open House will be Aug 1 through Sep 6 and the dedication will be Sep 21.  You will be here just in time for it.  I’m excited!!

This week has been good.  Tuesday, I went over to Mary Broadbent’s to get your school stuff going.  I’m excited about that, too. Miss, pleas know it will be okay for you to get back into school.  I need your PIN # for your AG account and your password.  Lauren will leave out that info before she forwards your e-mail.

Wednesday, I went by myself to the Brigham City Temple in the afternoon because Diane couldn’t go to Bountiful.  Daines and Overdyn’s from the group weren’t going to be there either.  It was a full session.

Thursday, “D” and I went to Zaxby’s for dinner.

Peggy and I went Visiting Teaching four times to catch everybody. I am going to Women’s Conference this week so we went this past week.

Our weather yesterday was rain, rain, rain and more rain all day long.  The grass was soggy, too.  Today is sunny, but supposed to rain later on.

Jennifer and I went shopping for her birthday.  Then we went out to an early dinner to our favorite place.  It was an enjoyable day.

The Methuen Ward is sure good to you.  I’m grateful.  Tell Sister Allen thank you for me for doing things for Easter for you.

I received a letter from your mission office asking to verify e-mail addresses for me, our Bishop, and President Christiansen.  Tell the office they are all correct as they have them.

The Mickelson’s brought their twins to church today.  They are so cute.  The Newman’s spoke today in Sacrament Meeting.  It’s special when we have whole families participate.

I am at the Ewings today.  We are having ribs, baked potatoes, homemade bread, and cake, I think. 

Do you know anything about skyping for Mother’s Day yet?  Let us know as soon as you do.

Elizabeth is going to the prom this coming Saturday.  Her date tried to ask her in a unique way in the commons area of the school on Thursday.  He was using some cast members from the Beauty and the Beast.  Something went wrong with the sound and he was going to try to do it on Friday.  I haven’t heard how it came out.

Ben Lomond is losing three of their seminary teachers.  Mueller is going to be teaching Institute, Bro. Anderson is leaving, too. One other one is leaving, but I can’t remember who.  The kids are all bummed about Bro. Mueller leaving.  He wants to retire in a year – begged to stay one last year at Ben Lomond, but he was told time to move on.

Well, I’ll close for now.  Take care – I love you so-o-o-o much and miss you, too.

                                           Love, Mom

Hey Mom!!

 Sorry I didn't e-mail yesterday...we had zone conference and so today is our p-day. Thanks for the things you sent in Mary's package! I love the shirt. I wore it to Zone Conference. That's awesome that you got pictures hung up! 

 Easter was amazing!!!!! We got invited to Sister Allen's, the lady that you met in Utah. She had us over to watch her kids do an Easter Egg hunt and then we had dinner with her. She also had an Easter Basket for all of my companions and me. She is so sweet! We have SO MUCH candy!!! We don't know what to do with it all. We also went to a couple Easter Egg hunts on Saturday. Two different members in the ward had invited all their neighbors to the hunt and to eat. It was great to talk to people that way. It was definitely more productive than knocking on doors all day. Their neighbors were really nice. It was a great missionary tool!

  Zone Conference was amazing!!! President Stoker talked about how important the Spirit is in our teaching. I have really come to realize that the Spirit is the true teacher. We as missionaries don't know what people need without the Spirit. An example of that happened just last night. We met with one of our investigators and she was worrying about a lot of things. We weren't sure what to tell her or how to help her. We started by inviting the Spirit through prayer and then she told us some of the things that she was concerned with. I love teaching with my companions because when I'm not sure what to say they know what to say. Sister Fratcher and Sister Tarawhiti did a great job of testifying to her about how to give things to the Lord. It was amazing when one of us was done talking another one of stepped in. I know that the Spirit was helping us. It was a powerful lesson and I know that Ann felt the Spirit! It was amazing!! Sister Tarawhiti and I sang in the Lawrence ward (the other ward that meets in our building) on Sunday. We sang, "I Know that My Savior Loves Me." We did it acapella. It made me nervous because I sang the first verse and my companion sang the second verse. The Spirit was there though.

  This week I spent a lot of time studying the Resurrection and the Easter story. I was thinking about how Mary knows who Christ is after he says her name. A man in our ward that gave a talk in Sacrament mentioned that Mary's feelings of deep despair were changed instantly to feeling of eternal joy. She knew immediately who was calling her name. Do we know the Savior well enough that we would recognize Him if He were calling our names? If we don't we can continue to strive to know the Savior more every day! What a blessing the Gospel is. Go to this link and watch the video...it is amazing!! I love it! mormon.org/becauseofhim 
   As for school, I don't know what classes to sign up for and I know that I am still coming home August 13 so that is going to only give me a week and a half before school starts. That's nice of you for wanting to do that but I don't know how well that is going to work out. Thanks for all that you do for me!! I love you so much!!!

  Love,

    Sister Griffin

Hi Mom!!

 Your week sounds like it was busy. The next time you see Jack tell him I said hello...not that he would remember me. What did D do for family home evening? Sister Tarawhiti's mom sent an Easter package this week and she sent both of us stuff for Easter. I am sending you a picture of the pajamas that she sent us. It made Sister Tarawhiti and I so happy! I got Tammie Tycz's package. She is so sweet for sending that. If you see her tell her thank you for me. I am going to try to write her to thank her but if you see her will you tell her too? I'm not sure about Mother's day yet. I know we will be skyping but I'm not sure what time. Go ahead and make plans and then I will adjust our plans if need be. There won't be another transfer before Mother's day so I will be in Methuen still. We teaching a blind lady and she was wondering if the Church has a library for the blind. Is there a number that the church has to order books from for books on CD? I wasn't sure if you would know that but I thought since you helped Melba you might know if there was one.

  Our third companion is from American Fork...another Utahan!! She has been out a little shorter than I have. She came out the transfer after me. Her name is Sister Fratcher. She is a visitor center sister too, like Sister Tarawhiti. They were called to serve at the Joseph Smith's Birthplace Visitor's center but they have the chance to go to other areas too. It's been an adjustment having three people instead of two but it's been good.

  Transfer meeting was huge! There were so many missionaries there. A lot of Elders and Sisters got moved. I got to see some sisters that I haven't seen in a long time. All of my old companions that are still here were there except one. It was awesome to see them. Sister Huefner that I told you about on Christmas is going home next transfer. I can't believe it! She might come visit you. We received 4 sisters and 2 elders. This next transfer we aren't getting any elders...isn't that weird?!

  We had a sisters' conference this last week. It was in Farmingdale, Maine. It was great to go back up to Maine. I didn't realize how much I missed Maine until I went back up there. The meeting was so wonderful!! Sister Stoker talked about Esther and her important role in saving her people. Esther had great courage! The theme of the conference was "Such a Time as This" from Esther 4:14. There is a great video on mormonchannel.org that she showed us. It is called Courage. If you have time you should watch it. It is so good!! We all need to have courage like Esther! President Stoker talked lasting happiness and how we find it. He gave us 5 steps to happiness. They are 1. Fervent Prayer, 2. Exact Obedience, 3. Diligent Scripture Study, 4. Hard Work, and 5. Making and keeping covenants. It was exactly what I needed to hear. We had some women speak from the stakes that our areas cover. They did such a good job!! They are all inspiring women. One of the ladies from my last area came and talked about the companions she had on her mission. She was a wonderful missionary and she still is great at sharing the gospel. I got a picture with her. She is the lady that wrote the article in the October 2013 Ensign. I felt like all of the talks that were given were just for me! It was wonderful!!

  I have been studying the Atonement. I thought about Christ's love for us and what He says in John 15:13-15. He showed the ultimate way how to love. I was thinking of the scripture in 1 Samuel 18:1-3 how it talks about David and Jonathan. They were forever friends. Christ is our forever friend. He loves us more than we can comprehend. I hope that makes sense. Have a great week! And have a wonderful Easter!!!  I love you so much!!!

  Love,

   Sister Griffin

Picture 1-Here is me sitting in a porsche that a man has in our ward. It is a 1965. He just sold his red one for $165,000. These cars were so sweet! I thought Matt and D would like the picture.
Picture 2- This is the Easter stuff that Sister Tarawhiti's mom sent us. She sent us so much candy!

Picture 3- Here are the pajamas that Sister Tarawhiti's mom sent us. We are the Griffiti Sisters....aren't they cute!!! We were so happy to get them!

Hey Mom!!
 That's awesome that you were able to go to Conference. I bet you were pretty happy that Elder Holland spoke in that session. I did get your package...thank you so much!! The snickerdoodles were delicious! I love the skirt too!! Thanks!!! You are always so sweet to send me packages! You are wonderful! I don't thank you enough for all that you do for me!
  Transfers are coming up! We got a transfer call on Saturday from President Stoker. We were both pretty nervous. We wanted to stay together one more transfer. We answered the phone and he told us that we were both staying in Methuen and that were are going to receive a third companion. We were so surprised!! We are going to get our new companion tomorrow. We are arranging our apartment so we can have three people in there. It will be an adjustment but we know it will work great! We are hoping she is as crazy and fun as we are. I'm sure she will be!
  This week was awesome!! My companion is so inspired! We have time to come to the library for an hour each week, besides p-day, to get familiar with the videos that the church produces. We came earlier in the day then we had originally planned and there was a lady that was sitting next to us and she was looking up ways online to kill herself. We weren't sure how to approach her but we knew that we needed to talk to her. We decided to wait until she got up to leave to talk to her so we didn't talk to her in front of everyone. She got up to leave and we tried to follow her out to the parking lot. When we got out there she was no where to be found. I told my companion that maybe she went into the bathroom. We started to walk into the bathroom and sure enough she walked out right as we were walking in. It was a little awkward. She walked away to her car and my companion started running after her before she drove off. We told her that we felt like we needed to talk to her. My amazing companion then asked her, "Do you know that you are a daughter of God?" She said, "Yes, I do, but I needed the reminder." We then kept talking to her and exchanged phone numbers. It was great to see the Spirit work through us to help someone know who they are. It was a wonderful miracle!!!
  Conference was amazing!!! We watched it at the church. What were some of your favorite talks? I loved Elder Holland's talk...don't worry, Mom, I don't get food thrown at me or spit on. I liked it because we are definitely heading into a time that takes a lot of courage to not only live what we believe but to share with others what we believe. I love the promise that he gave about if we defend our faith with courtesy and compassion. He told us that if we do so we will forge unshakable faith. President Eyring's talk was amazing!!! I noticed that there were a few talks on family history and the lessons that we can learn from our ancestors. I love how they talked about our faith being strengthened by knowing who our ancestors were. I noticed that there were a lot of talks about being persistent even through discouragement. Elder Bednar's was another one of my favorite talks. We all have a load to carry and that load will definitely help us all get back to Heavenly Father one day. I love how he brought out the point that we can receive strength through the Atonement. That is so true!!! I loved Bishop Gary E. Stevenson's talk too. We all have a labor to perform and we have medals to earn. It made me wonder if I am doing all I can to perform to the best of my ability. Another theme I picked out was how important it is to be a true disciple of Christ and to love everyone. There were so many good talks. I wish I could talk to you about all of them. I love you!! Have a great week! Thanks for all that you do for me!

Hi Mom!

  How are you doing? It sounds like you had a wonderful week! The women's meeting was amazing!!!! I'll talk about it later in my e-mail. As far as things you could send...I'm in need of two undershirts. The ones that I get from Downeast seem to be the best. They are called Wonder tees. I could use a black one and a white one. I was going to try and find some here but if you could send them to me that would help a ton. If you can't don't worry about it. I took ibuprofen because my heel was bothering me but it is fine now. 

  This week has been amazing!!! We are talking to people about Easter. We are asking people why they feel it is important to celebrate it. We were doing that on the coldest and windiest day of the week. We started talking to people about Easter and two people came out and talked to us at two different houses even though it was really cold. We ended up teaching them about the Restoration and they both wanted copies of the Book of Mormon. It was really awesome!!! 

  On Friday our ward had a dinner and variety show and also a dessert and service auction for the Young men and Young Women. It was awesome! We have a family in the ward that has made a band. They performed! They were so good. They are the Call Family and so they have named their band Calling Out. Sister Tarawhiti and I helped the Elders do something for the variety show. The first picture I sent you is it. We each took a section of the drawing and colored it in with markers to make a portrait of Joseph Smith. Elder Chavez is a really good artist and so he drew it with pencil and then we darkened it with markers. They ended up auctioning it off. It sold for 35 dollars. We were really surprised. There were so many desserts!!!

  On Saturday, the Elders had a baptism. Lauren and James Healy got baptized. They are such a sweet couple. Lauren has already asked us if she can come teaching with us. Right after she got baptized we gave her towel and then she looked at us and said, "I'm a new woman!" She was so excited to get baptized. She told us that she was even more excited to receive the Holy Ghost. She bore her testimony yesterday in church and she bore her testimony on fasting. It was so powerful! She is a great example to everyone in our ward! Her husband is awesome too! 

  The Women's meeting was amazing!! I noticed how much all of the people who spoke focused on keeping our covenants and how we need to focus on our similarities not our differences. When President Eyring was talking about his mom and how she helped him make and keep his covenants I couldn't help but think how you have helped me make and keep my covenants. Thanks Mom for all that you have done for me! You are a wonderful example!! I loved how Sister Burton talked about us all being true disciples of Christ! Let us all boldly declare that we are disciples of Christ! I love you so much!!! Enjoy Conference!! I would love to hear your insights on the talks next week!!

  Love,

    Sister Griffin

Picture 1-the picture of Joseph Smith that we did for the ward variety show

Picture 2- Sister Tarawhiti, Maddie, and me at the Bishop's house. We did a lesson with the Title of Liberty with the Bishop and his family and Maddie decided to wear their title of liberty.

Picture 3- Me, Sister Tarawhiti, Sister Brown and Sister Aeschbacher. I thought about sending you a funny face one but I didn't think you would enjoy it as much!

Hi Mom!!!
 . You are wonderful! Sorry I didn't answer about the skirt. I would love you to send that to me. How are you doing? I will definitely keep the Hunsakers and the Larsons in my prayers. I can't believe you were able to wear sandals to church. It is trying to warm up here. 

 This week has been good. One of our investigators, Ann, called us and asked if we could meet with her this week. We tried to set something up with her at the beginning of the week but she said that she was too busy this week. It was a pleasant surprise to be able to teach her. Her husband has been really sick and she has been taking care of him. We weren't able to meet with Kathey this week. She came to church yesterday though. We are hoping to meet with her this week. 

 I went on exchange this week with one of my sister training leaders. She is amazing. The other Sister Training Leader came to Methuen with Sister Tarawhiti. I was with Sister Aeschbacher. She is great at testifying powerfully. I was able to have a conversation with her that was completely led by the Spirit. We have some amazing Sisters that are serving here!!! We taught two of their investigators and the minute we walked into their home you could feel the Spirit. They are loving learning about the gospel. We taught them about the Gospel of Jesus Christ. One of them said that I sound like a preacher that he likes on T.V. I couldn't tell if it was a compliment, then he started talking about how simple he taught and how much he liked watching him. It was kind of weird. 

  We do get invited to people's houses for dinner quite often. Not every night but often enough. We ate at the Alllen's this week. That was a lot of fun! Sister Allen told me again how much she appreciated you going to her grandpa's viewing. Thanks again for going to that. My companion is from Lehi. 

   This week I was studying Nephi's last words. He exhorts all of us to come unto Christ. Nephi reminds us that Christ is always calling for us in 2 Nephi 26: 25. I think it is amazing that Nephi prophesied of the coming of Christ, His death, and resurrection. All of the prophets truly testify of Christ and His divine role.  How do we come unto Christ in our daily actions? How do we follow Christ daily? Heavenly Father has given us the tools to come unto Christ. Have a great week!! I love you so much!!! 

  Love,

    Sister Griffin

Hey Mom! 

 How are you doing? It sounds like you had a busy week. You had a meeting for new Sunday School Curriculum???? What is changing with Sunday School? That's awesome that Sister Miller wrote you. Her name is Chelsea.

 This week has been a good one. You talked about the Honeymoon stage for companions...Sister Tarawhiti and I have been ourselves from the beginning. We feel like we have known each other for a long time. It is great! There wasn't any walking on egg shells for us. 
  We met with Kathey a few times this week. She is doing pretty good. We took her up to the Joseph Smith Memorial in Vermont on Saturday. We were hoping it would have been a spiritual "ah-ha" moment for her but it wasn't as powerful as we had hoped. She liked it but she just didn't seem very interested in it. It was amazing to be able to go where the prophet Joseph Smith was born. I will try to send pictures. We watched the Restoration that is narrated by Lucy Mack. It was amazing!!! She talks about going through the refiner's fire. After the movie we talked to Kathey about how we all go through rough times and how those times are making us grow and learn. Christ is the Refiner and He knows when we are the people that He needs us to be. He knows that we are done or finished when He can see His image in us. I took a lot more pictures then I am going to send but I'm hoping the pictures will work. 

  We met with a less active family this week, the Cathcarts. Sister Cathcart wants to come back to church but she really wants her husband to come back too. We were able to talk with her husband before we left. He started talking about the spiritual experiences he had when he was active in the church. It is amazing the Spirit that comes into the lessons when people start talking about their past experiences with the Spirit. Brother and Sister Cathcart helped the missionaries a lot when they were active. They still have a lot of fire in them. We are hoping to help them feel that fire again. 

  As I was pondering at the Joseph Smith Memorial I could feel the Spirit so strong. It was reaffirming my testimony of the truthfulness of the Restoration. The Spirit there is so strong. It is definitely scared ground! There is a wonderful talk that I have been studying this week. It was given by Elder Tad R. Callister at the CES Devotional in January of this year. It is about the Blueprint of Christ's church and how the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the same church. It is powerful. Everything that was in Christ's church is in this church today and he backs it up with scriptures! It is a powerful talk. If you get the chance you should read it. I know that this is Christ's church on the earth today and that we have a living prophet today! I love you!!! Have a great week!!!!!

  Love,

    Sister Griffin

Picture 1- Sister Tarawhiti, Kathey, Me, and Sibel(the member that took us up)

Picture 2-The monument! Isn't it beautiful???!!!!!

Picture 3-Sister Tarawhiti and me. This statue is the accurate height and weight of Joseph Smith. 

Hi Mom,

  How are you? Sister Allen is back in Utah. She really appreciated you coming to the viewing. She loved being able to meet you and Lauren. How was your dinner at Eagle Mountain? I hope it was fun! That is awesome about Larry Hansen going on a mission! They are going to love it! 

 My new companion is amazing!!! Her name is Sister Tarawhiti (Tearafeetie). She was born in Hawaii, raised in New Zealand for about 10 years and lived in Utah for the last 9 or so years. Her dad is Maori and from New Zealand. We get along so good. She was serving up at the Joseph Smith Memorial as a visitors' center sister. We think a lot alike and we laugh all the time. Her testimony is amazing!! I have already learned so much from her. When she bears her testimony and asks questions when we are teaching you can feel the Spirit so strong! I love it!!! We have already had so much fun together! I have seen how powerful a unified companionship is. It is amazing to be able to teach with Sister Tarawhiti. Her love of the gospel is just powerful!!!!

  Kathey is amazing!! She always has so many questions. She is struggling with recognizing the Spirit answering her prayers. Her best friend, Sister Gretter, keeps telling her to write down all of the little blessings that she keeps receiving. She has noticed that she is changing and becoming a kinder person. Kathey has a lot more faith than she realizes. She is expecting answers to come in big ways but it seems like her answers are coming in small ways. She just needs to understand that is how the Spirit works sometimes. She wants to go to the birthplace of Joseph Smith in Vermont. We are hoping to go some time soon. Sister Tarawhiti said that the Spirit is so strong there so I can't wait to get her there. 

  We were studying the Atonement the other day. We talked about how we can help others feel of the power of the Atonement for the little things in life, like frustration. We talked about how if Christ suffered for the big things that we go through surely He suffered for the little things. Christ was the greatest example of love. John 15:13-15. Christ loves us so much that He laid down His life for us! We are priceless. I know that the Savior knows us and is there for us all the time! The gospel is true and can help anyone no matter what is going in their lives. 

    So I have another favor to ask...Sister Bursell was talking the other day about how she is feeling about her oldest leaving the house for college. Since you have experienced children leaving the house I thought maybe you could write her a letter telling her how you dealt with that and how you got through it. If you don't want to you don't have to. I just thought it might be nice. Her address is 51 Bear Hill Road Windham, NH 03087. I love you so much!!! 

  Love,

   Sister Griffin

Hi Mom!!!

� How are you? Thank you so much for going to Sister Allen's grandpa's viewing. She told me that she really appreciated you going there. She wishes she would have taken a picture with you. Thank you so so so much for going to that!! Sister Allen is wonderful! I feel like I have known her forever. You are the best! You had a busy week! It sounds like your weather is getting fairly warm. We are still in the 30s here. We had a couple days in the 50s. It was a nice change.

� Sister Miller is leaving and I am staying. I am not getting a new missionary. I'm not sure who my new companion is but I will meet her on Tuesday. Sister Miller was here just over 7 months. She is really not wanting to leave but I'm sure her new area will be great! As far as the picture of the fan in the freezer...we were helping the Wilcox's move during the summer and we were really hot so they decided to put a fan in the freezer to blow the cold air out. I thought it was funny so I took pictures of it.

� This week has been awesome!! We met with Kathey twice. She called us this week to ask us if President Monson could baptize her. She wants to write him a letter to ask him if he would do that. A member of the ward invited Kathey to come to dinner with us at her house. Kathey asked about the things we can eat and drink and so Tilly, the member, told her about it and so did we. Kathey said that the only thing that she does is drink coffee. We found out this morning that she had hot chocolate this morning instead of coffee. Kathey is so hungry for the gospel. She has been getting on lds.org to watch Conference talks. She is amazing! Sister Gretter, who is Kathey's friend, is wonderful at teaching Kathey and testifying to her. When Kathey found out that we were getting transfer calls she said, "You better not be leaving because I prayed for you to be here. You can't leave yet." She is so funny!

� This week I have studied the Gospel of Jesus Christ. As I was studying this I read 2 Nephi 31. I love how Nephi starts out that he is going to talk with plainness. The gospel is really simple and clear. The Lord has given us commandments and we have the choice to obey them. We must choose to obey them. I love the visual that Nephi uses to describe the Doctrine of Christ. He says that we must have faith and the way to open the gate is through repentance and baptism and receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost. That isn't all that we have to do; we must endure to the end or in other words continue on the path that Heavenly Father has given us (keep the commandments). Heavenly Father has given us the tools that we need to return to Him, we have to be the ones that decide to pick them up and use them. I know that Heavenly Father loves us so much!!! Have a great week!!! I love you!!!!

� Love,

��� Sister Griffin

The picture is of the snow outside of our apartment

 Thank you!

�

Sorry I am having a hard time forwarding the picture that Callee sent.  

Hi Mom,

  How are you? That's too bad that Lauren was sick. Before I forget, Happy Birthday Brad and Lindsay this week and Happy Birthday Joseph next week. That's awesome about the cooking class! 

  This week has been good. We got a huge snow storm on Wednesday. We were going to teach Kathey but since it snowed so bad we couldn't meet with her. She came to church yesterday though. She doesn't live in our mission boundaries but her best friend lives in the boundaries. She doesn't like the idea of having to go to a different ward. She likes the Methuen ward. She told me yesterday that she might just have to move into the ward boundaries. She is so funny! She asked some questions in Gospel principles and she felt like she was asking too many. A lady in our ward, Tilly, told her to ask the questions because she knows that the gospel will answer her questions. I was so grateful for Tilly and her testimony. We have some wonderful people in our ward! 
  I have been thinking about something that Kathey said in church yesterday. She mentioned that she was starving for truth and she feels like she is finally getting answers. It is so true, she is hungry and thirsty for the truth. She has a lot of deep questions that show that she has really thought about where she stands with God. When she said that I thought of the woman at the well. Christ is the Living Water and if we apply His teachings then we shall never hunger (or thirst). I love being able to help people find a way to quench their thirst. 
  We taught a lady named Ann this week. I think I might have told you about her. She is the one that is trying to quit smoking. She got really sick about 2 weeks ago, so sick that she couldn't smoke. Sister Miller and I told her that God was telling her to quit smoking. She went a week and a half without smoking. I know she can do if she relies on the Savior to help her. 

  This week I have been studying in Ether 3. The Brother of Jared had great faith!! He knew that if he told the Lord the idea that he came up with to light the barges that the Lord would do it. I think the Lord is like that a lot of the time with us. We have to come up with solutions to problems and then approach the Lord about them. The Brother of Jared knew that he had weaknesses but he remembered that the Lord has all power. We must be like that! The Brother of Jared had a perfect knowledge of the Savior after he saw Him.  Ether 3:19 "And because of the ^aknowledge of this man he could not be kept from beholding within the ^bveil; and he saw the finger of Jesus, which, when he saw, he fell with fear; for he knew that it was the finger of the Lord; and he had ^cfaith no longer, for he knew, nothing ^ddoubting" One day we too will have that perfect knowledge! We have to work on it everyday. How do we continue to make our faith grow? I know that we are here on the earth to learn and grow to become like our Heavenly Father!  I love you!!! Have a great week!!!!

   Love,

     Sister Griffin

As far as what to put in a package...I'm not sure. I can't think of anything that I need right now. Anything you want to put in will be great! 

Hi Mom!!

  How are you? How
did your talk go? I heard from a couple people that it was so good! What did
you say in it? Can you believe that it is February already?! How is your
Presidency going? How is the ward? Can you send me the Bow Tie Skillet Lasagna
recipe and the coconut bread recipe, please? I have talked to people about it
and they want to try it. 

  This week has
been great! We taught Kathey and we had a powerful lesson with her. She has so
many questions and I love it! We taught her parts of the Plan of Salvation. She
was asking about the Spirit world and we got led to talk to her about the
Atonement, which is something that she has struggled with. She didn't
understand why a loving God would make His Son suffer like that. We showed her Elder
Holland's talk, "None Were with Him." She loved it. She loved this
part of it, "With all the conviction of my soul I testify that He did please
His Father perfectly and that a perfect Father did not forsake
His Son in that hour. Indeed, it is my personal belief that in all of Christ’s
mortal ministry the Father may never have been closer to His Son than in these
agonizing final moments of suffering. Nevertheless, that the supreme sacrifice
of His Son might be as complete as it was voluntary and solitary, the Father
briefly withdrew from Jesus the comfort of His Spirit, the support of His
personal presence. It was required, indeed it was central to the significance
of the Atonement, that this perfect Son who had never spoken ill nor done wrong
nor touched an unclean thing had to know how the rest of humankind—us, all of
us—would feel when we did commit such sins. For His Atonement to be infinite
and eternal, He had to feel what it was like to die not only physically but
spiritually, to sense what it was like to have the divine Spirit withdraw,
leaving one feeling totally, abjectly, hopelessly alone." She said that
she feels like she understands why He had to suffer now. We asked her to read
Moroni 10:3-5 and she couldn't even get through it. She got one sentence in and
she started crying. Her friend Sister Gretter was testifying of the Book of
Mormon and the Gospel throughout our whole lesson. The Spirit was there
testifying to her too! It was amazing!!!!!!

  We met with Ashley this week too! Her mom
was supposed to come to church this week but she didn't. We had Ashley's
primary teacher come to our lesson with her and it was great. Ashley told us
the story of Joseph Smith. She is praying to know if he was a prophet right
now. We are trying to plan a time that we could take her with a member to the
Joseph Smith Memorial in Vermont. I hope we can get her there to feel of the
Spirit that is there. 

  This week I studied the difference
between the power of the Holy Ghost and the Gift of the Holy Ghost. I love what
it says in the Bible Dictionary: "The gift of the Holy Ghost is the right
to have, whenever one is worthy, the companionship of the Holy Ghost. For those
who receive this gift, the Holy Ghost acts as a cleansing agent to purify them
and sanctify them from all sin. Thus it is often spoken of as “fire”." The
Gift of the Holy Ghost provides the cleansing that we all need. We are so
blessed to be led by the Holy Ghost. He is a Comforter and teacher. John 14:26-27.
I love you so much!!! Have a great week!!!!!

  Here is a link that is for our mission.
It will let you know what is going on in our mission

 Love, 

     Sister Griffin.

Hello Mom!!

 How are you? It sounds like you had a busy week. I got your handwritten letter on Friday. It sounds like Ammon's Eagle Court of Honor was good. What did he do for his project? I still have a lot of catching up to do to thank everyone for all the letters they sent me for Christmas. Everyone is so generous and caring! We aren't really getting very much snow. The big storm that was supposed to hit us hit everyone north and south of us. We just got a drizzle of snow and today it is raining. 

  You said that you have been asked to speak in Stake Conference...that's awesome!! You asked for some ideas on how Relief Society helps with activation. That first thing that I thought of was through visiting teaching. Arlene Love is a perfect example of how visiting teaching helps people come back to church. Helping those that are less active feel the Spirit is so important and visiting teaching does that. Mom, you are a great example of a faithful visiting teacher. You go every month and the sisters that you visit know they can count on you no matter what. Think of some of the sisters that you have visit taught over the past years...maybe some of them came back and maybe some of them didn't but you played a vital role in helping them have the spirit in their home. Thanks for your wonderful example Mom!!! I love you so much!!! 

  This week has been awesome!! We started teaching a lady that has met with the sisters before. She really wants to get baptized but she thinks that she won't ever be able to quit smoking. We are going to try to help her realize that the Savior can help her because of the Atonement. She has such a strong desire to get baptized but her faith in the Atonement is lacking a little bit. We talked to her about studying the Book of Mormon and why it is important. She loves learning about the gospel. She always has questions for us. 

  A member, Sister Gretter, brought a friend, Kathy, to church this week. Kathy met with Sister Johnson, my trainer, when Sister Johnson was here in Methuen. Sister Gretter told Kathy that I am a lot like Sister Johnson. When I went to talk to Kathy, she mentioned to me that I was famous. It through me off a little. She told me that Sister Gretter had told her all about me. Kathy then said, "I think you are an answers to my prayers." I don't know if I am an answer to her prayers but I hope I can help her come closer to her Savior. She has been searching for truth for a long time. We are meeting with her this week and she told me that she has a lot of questions to ask us. I can't wait to meet with her!! 

 Sister Brea gave a talk yesterday in church and she talked about her dad. She lost her dad very suddenly about six years ago. She described how she felt after that and how her siblings felt. I felt like she was telling everyone my life story. It was a tender mercy of the Lord. I was trying to describe to my companion how it felt and the only way I could describe it was to tell her that I felt like I was watching myself give that talk. It was such a spiritual talk. She talked about how the gospel has helped her and her family. She is one of 15 kids. She is an amazing woman!!

  This week I studied about our life on earth and why we are here. Our life here is an opportunity and a blessing. It is an opportunity because it is what makes it possible for us to become like our Father in Heaven. If we didn't come to earth then we could not progress. We are put on the earth to choose righteously. Those who are choosing wickedness are living in a state that is contrary to our nature (Alma 41:10-11). God wants us to be happy and the way we are happy is if we are choosing to live the way that He has asked us to. I think of the quote from President Hinckley, "Don’t make the kinds of mistakes that will bring regret. You can be wise and happy or stupid and miserable. The choice is yours.” That is so true!! I love you! Have a great week!!!

  Love,

    Sister Griffin

On Sun, Jan 26, 2014 at 11:26 PM, griffincru@juno.com <griffincru@juno.com> wrote:

HI, Missy Callee,

How are you doing?  Have you had a good week?

I hear tell you wrote Marilyn and Gary L:iptrot a sweet letter.  You are good to try to catch up and keep up.  You are amazing!

Are you still having to walk because of bad snow storms?  Jennifer said she heard news reports of lots of snow in the north east part of the country.

Are you still teaching investigators?

I still haven’t heard from Lilliene that moved to Salt Lake.  I’ve been hoping she will call.

This has been a good week for me.  I didn’t go to Family Home Evening group because Iwent to Salt Lake with the Barnes.  I already told you that.

Tuesday, I went to lunch with Kathy Talbot.

Wednesday, I worked for Coray’s.  I will start goi9ng there on Fridays, too.  They’re having a few troubles, so I need to drive them around a little.  Barbara is falling off and on.  Ed can’t help her because then he would fall.

Diane and I went to the Logan Temple with the temple group.  It had been awhile since we had been with them.  There were 8 of us.

Thursday, we (Darren and I) went to the Olive Garden to dinner and Jennifer and Brad and Lindsay and Shawn were waiting for a table so we ate with them.

I had Friday off.  I just fiddled around.  I made chicken noodle soup and took some to Brooks and to Dolly. 

Saturday, I just cleaned the house and then at night I went to Weber State’s basketball game.  Weber won.  They played Montana university.  I enjoyed going – it was fun.

Today, I should have gone to the Ewings house for dinner, but I had thyem to my house because we all went to Ammon’s Eagle Court of Honor.  That was a real nice program – a live eagle came from the Ogden Nature Center.  The man who gave the presentation did a superb job.  It was cool.

Well, I’ll close for now.  Take care. I love you and miss you, too.   

  Love, Mom