Sister Macey Gates // Week Seventy-Eight // "The Hardest Thing I've Ever Loved To Do"

The hardest thing I've ever loved to do was serve with my Savior and Heavenly Father side by side. I cannot believe my mission has come to an end, I never thought this day would come, and I didn't ever want it to.  This has been the most hardest, most saddest, most amazing, most worth it thing I've ever done.  I have never struggled so bad, had so many trials, got rejected so much, received so many answers, got so much support, enjoyed something so much, or felt so much love from my Heavenly Father.  I think the best scripture to describe a mission is Ether 12:27.  I have grown so much more than i ever thought in my mission. I have never learned so much in such a short amount of time before.  I never thought i'd say this but i would do this again in a heart beat. This IS the BEST decision I  have ever made. 

This week has been super hard for me, knowing that I'm leaving.  At the start of this week I knew there was so much we still needed to do because we had a baptism, we had a wedding, we needed to find a lot of investigators, we had to drop a lot of people and we weren't having the success we had wanted the past couple weeks. But we decided that we were going to have all the faith in the world that we would be successful. Hermana Santoyo was off her game this week again, she forgot her tag everyday, and the phone and her planner and she really just didn't have any desire to work. It was hard and super frustrating but I was determined to have a last successful week of my mission. On Wednesday we had the chance to teach the bible class, I'm gonna miss teaching that so much. And then after Bishop called all the missionaries in our ward to his office and we figured everything out for the baptism and wedding and then ended up telling funny mission stories, we have the best bishop in the world! Thursday was our day full of success, full of miracles! We decided to go visit a referral that we got from a member in Jurupa, her sister is a non-member.  We show up and just 3 of her kids were there, but they let us in and we had the opportunity to share a quick message with them. Their brother actually just passed away 6 months ago and its been super hard for them, we made a return appointment for friday to teach them the plan of salvation.  It was the most amazing lesson ever, so powerful and the spirit was definitely present. It made me realize how lucky i am to know that plan, that we do have a Heavenly Father and that he really does love us. After our first lesson with them, we picked up a former investigator, she said she really wanted to know about our religion(thats a good sign) and then after Hermana Rivera took us to her neighbors house who is having a hard time too. That day we picked up 6 new investigators.  I could not thank my heavenly father enough, and i couldn't stop singing Count your many Blessing haha.  Mama Yokshas came and visited us too, it was so good to see her:)  We had the opportunity to help Rocio plan for her wedding and me and Hermana Santoyo ended up setting up everything for ourselves, buying the food and cooking the food and then serving it that night. It was so fun:) Enrique and Rocio love Santoyo and I so much, and we love them so much too. I feel like we are all one big family. Bishop married them in the relief society room at church, it was short and quick but its what they have needed to do for so long. They told us they weren't going to come to church on Sunday cause they were going on a honeymoon, but yesterday morning they walked in to sacrament meeting:)  After Rocio gave me biggest hug and started crying.  She has wanted this for so long. She told me that instead of going on a honeymoon they had to come say bye. I love them so much! And i know she will be baptized in the next couple of weeks. I had the chance to bear my testimony in sacrament meeting and I look out and everyone is just crying, I took all of me not to cry. This ward is my family, I love every single one of them so much! And actually the Ramirez family(from corona)  came to church with us cause it was my last sunday, and Edgar & Leonore (from corona) came too. It was the best thing ever. AND WE HAD 6 PEOPLE AT CHURCH!! Then yesterday night cute Bethany got baptized. Before her baptism she actually sang a song by herself, I Know When I am Baptized, it was the cutest thing i've EVER heard. That little girl was more than ready to be baptized:) And we ended to week hitting Standard. This was the hardest, most stressful, most amazing last week I could of ever had. I love my companion so much, its going to be so hard to leave her, she is one of my best friends, and has helped me so much throughout my mission. I would not trade this experience for anything. 

Se que sin niguna dude que mi Salvador vive. Yo se que el Libro de Mormon es verdad, amo este libro! Se que nuestro Padre Celestial tiene un plan muy especial por cada uno de nosotros.  Se que Dios siempre, siempre contesta nuestras oraciones si pedimos con fe. Se que no podia haberla hecho mi mision sin mi padre celestial y jesucristo. Y yo se que mi familia es eterna:) Este es lo mejor regalo que mi padre celestial me ha dado y es lo mas precioso para mi. Se que este es la iglesia verdadera. Y no puedo esperar por el dia cuando puedo agradecerle a mi padre celestial personalmente por este oportunidad que el me ha dado a servir una mision completa.

I love you all more than you can imagine, thank you everyone for everything you have done for me, for helping me in this amazing journey:) 

Nos vemos prontito:)

Love Hermana Gates:)

I played the piano at the wedding hahah

Our Bishop

The last breakfast

Our district

FHE with the Pravias:)

BARRIO NUEVO MISSIONARIES

The last supper with my Hermanitas:)

So last night, we waxed my legs hahahha