November 4th

Momma! 

I CAN'T BELIEVE I'VE BEEN OUT 5 MONTHS! 

Time flies. It blows my mind. It feels like I just got out here and I'm already almost done with a third of my mission. Just goes to show how important it is to make the best out of every day out here.

I love hearing about all of your missionaries experiences! You are seriously the dream member missionary. Your willingness to share the Gospel makes me more willing to ask the ward member in  my branch to get more involved. I also wanted to let you know how much I appreciated getting Rachel's story about deciding to continue with Biology. In our weekly planning session last week, I was going to give another set of missionaries one of our investigators. He had been progressing and had just come to church for the first time, but his English is not great and I did not think that my companion and I could teach him effectively. The morning after I read your email, I was saying my morning prayers and the investigator came into my mind. I asked the Lord if I should give him to other missionaries and immediately the words from Rachel's story "You can do hard things" came into my mind. So, we decided to continue to teach him. We met with him last week and it went really well. Thank you so much!!

Something I thought I should tell you! I just found out that my release date is 30 of December 2014. 19 month mission! :) I can be your new year's gift! 

LOVE YOU!

Sister Sarah Bennion

PS Hahaha so glad you finally finished the Christmas book :)

Temple day for the sister missionaries at the Melbourne Temple!

In Chinatown!

A letter that Sarah shared that went to her Mission President:

Everything is going great in Melbourne City Mandarin branch! My companion and I are getting along really well and we are seeing a lot of success in our area. We cleared out a lot of investigators in our weekly planning session, so we spent a lot of this week finding. We were able to find a lot of great people and really feel that we will be able to see miracles this next week. 

We have two progressing investigator who is doing really well. One of these investigators, Jeff, has been looking into the church since August. He knows everything is true, but wanted to wait for his mother, who is a Christian, to come to see him be baptized. My companion and I were both a little nervous, because he had not told his mother he was coming to our church yet and the opinion some Christian churches have about "Mormons"are pretty negative. Two weeks ago, Jeff told us that he finally told his mom he was going to join our church. She asked for the name of the church and he said that it was the church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints. She responded that, as long as Jesus Christ was in the title, she approves! He is planning to be baptized next Friday. 

This morning, I was reading in personal study from the Teachings of George Albert Smith and a passage from the book caught my eye. It is a quote from George Albert Smith that states: 

" I congratulate you that there has come into your lives this privilege and this blessing. And now I adjure you as your brother, plead with you as one of the humblest among you, do not hide your candle under a bushel. Do not conceal the knowledge God has bestowed upon you from your fellows.

Do not annoy them, but do not be unwise enough as to hide from them the gospel of Jesus Christ. That is the only power of God unto salvation in the celestial kingdom.^19( ...) I have seen those who were discouraged, those who were in darkness, those who questioned the purpose of their being, and when they have had taught to them the glorious truths of the gospel of Jesus Christ, they have changed, they have learned to be happy, to be contented, to be satisfied, to be enthusiastic in believing and teaching the gospel that was proclaimed by Jesus Christ when he dwelt upon this earth and traveled in Galilee."

Jesus Christ is really the reason behind everything we do as missionaries and as members of the Church. I am so grateful to have a knowledge of him and bring that light to His children! 

Have a great week! 

-Sister Sarah Bennion