Hello!

Hello everyone!!

We have had such a great week here in New Hope! It was crazy busy with exchanges and zone meetings and all of that fun stuff, but I have learned so, so much and most importantly, I have felt the love of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. Their love is so real. I wanted to share from my notebook on Gospel Library what I've been studying this week. I chose the scripture Helaman 3:35 to ponderize this past week, kind of in a whim. But as I actually turned back to it and really read it, I realized that it contains what we need to do to love the Lord first and truly progress in this life. Too often we feel stuck in one place and like we can't move forward, but God sees the greet potential in each of us. As we rely on Him and our Savior, we are able to overcome the setbacks, to develop a deep love for God, ourselves, and others, and we are able to progress toward eternal life. I have loved starting this study and seeing the things we should always be doing in order to grow and align our will with a God's will. Here are my thoughts so far

How Do We Progress And Put God First?

36 Master, which is the great commandment in the law?

37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy
heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.

38 This is the first and great commandment. (Matthew 22)

When we want to put the Lord first and love Him above all else, we need to turn to Him, be humble, and give ourselves to Him through the Atonement. That is how we progress and draw nearer to God and become who He intends us to be. We learn how to do this in the Book of
Mormon, in Helaman chapter 3.

34 And they were lifted up in pride, even to the persecution of many
of their brethren. Now this was a great evil, which did cause the more
humble part of the people to suffer great persecutions, and to wade
through much affliction. (Helaman 3)

35 Nevertheless they did fast and pray oft, and did wax stronger and
stronger in their humility, and firmer and firmer in the faith of
Christ, unto the filling their souls with joy and consolation, yea,
even to the purifying and the sanctification of their hearts, which
sanctification cometh because of their yielding their hearts unto God.
(Helaman 3)


1. "Suffer great persecutions and wade through much affliction"

We suffer through the challenges life throws at us and realize that we cannot make it through alone. It is not easy, we need help, but we keep going knowing that God is the one who can help.

2. "Fast and pray oft"

God cannot help us unless we out our trust in Him and act. We must pray with faith and with the spirit, and we must do it often. 2 Nephi 33:3 "But I, Nephi, have written what I have written, and I esteem it as of great worth, and especially unto my people. For I pray continually for them by day, and mine eyes water my pillow by night, because of them; and I cry unto my God in faith, and I know that he will hear my cry."We understand what prayer really is from the Bible Dictionary:"As soon as we learn the true relationship in which we stand toward God (namely, God is our Father, and we are His children), then at once prayer becomes natural and instinctive on our part (Matt.7:7–11). Many of the so-called difficulties about prayer arise from forgetting this relationship. Prayer is the act by which the will of the Father and the will of the child are brought into correspondence with each other. The object of prayer is not to change the will of God but to secure for ourselves and for others blessings that God is already willing to grant but that are made conditional on our asking for them. Blessings require some work or effort on our part before we can obtain them. Prayer is a form of work and is an appointed means for obtaining the highest of all blessings."Praying with faith is knowing and believing that God hears you and that He will listen and answer your prayers when He know it is right. We share with Him our will, and more fully come to understand His will as well.

3. "Wax stronger and stronger in their humility"

'Wax' means to increase. 'Strong' means determined, self controlled, and firmly held and established So we need to increase our humility and make it firmly held. We need to get to the depths of humility and be willing to act on what we receive from the Lord. We need to be teachable, and we need to ask "What lack I yet?"

4. "Wax firmer and firmer in the faith of Christ"

'Firm' means strongly felt and unlikely to change, steadfast and constant, decided/fixed upon, and definite. Our faith needs to be unshaken. We need to be fixed upon Christ, and willing to give it all away to follow Him.Faith in Christ is built through prayer, through studying the word of God, and through attaining Christlike attributes."We do not know Him until we become like Him."

5. "Fill your soul with joy and consolation"

'Consolation' means giving comfort to someone who has suffered. Christ fills us with joy, he is our Consolation. When we are filled with that joy, it is because we are allowing Christ and the Atonement to change us. We read in 2 Nephi 2 that agency is essential to progression, and we choose whether or not we will be comforted by Him. We suffer every single day, and He is there to comfort and heal, and to allow us to be free of the scars. Through Him, our souls will be filled with joy.

6. "Yield your heart unto God"

We need to give up our heart to the Lord through loving Him, trusting Him, and doing His will above our own. We do this through prayer and humility, and acting upon the promptings of the Spirit. We are constant and definite in our Savior, and we allow Him to comfort us and bring us joy.

7. "The purifying and sanctification of our hearts"

"The pure in heart shall see God" -Matthew 5:8 'Pure' means free from guilt or sin, blameless. Being pure comes from clean actions and thoughts in every way. Zion=the pure in heart. 'Sanctified' is the process of being free from sin, being pure, and clean and holy THROUGH THE ATONEMENT. "Sanctify yourselves, that your minds become single to God." -D&C 88:68 "Sanctify yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do MIRACLES among you." -Joshua 3:5 We are sanctified by the blood of Christ. We are sanctified through the Atonement and the love of our Savior.

God's love is so real. It changes us and it allows us to be who we are
meant to be.

I love y'all so much and hope you have a wonderful week!

-Sister Snyder


Today while we were down in Austin :)

Hi y'all!!

10/12/2015

hello!!! how is eveyrone doing? Life is so, so good!! 

 

I want to share a quote that Sister Bateman shared this week from President Eyring: "Whoever you are, and wherever you may be, you hold in your hands the happiness of more people than you can imagine." There is so much we can choose to do!

 

There is always so much that happens in one short week, and it just shows time and time again that the Lord fulfills His promises and this work is moving forward "boldly, nobly, and independent." I can feel it each day as we study and prepare, and as we go out and work. The Restoration of the gospel continues to happen today, it is being restored to those who knew it once before in their life before this one, and they are again coming to know it. I see it every single day, and it has changed me. Every single person needs to hear what we have been blessed to partake of already!

 

We had MLC in San Antonio on Tuesday and talked a lot about faith and working with members and the Sabbath day! It was so good! I get to give some trainings this week about some of the things we learned and I'm so excited! I love the Slaughters so much. Everything President and Sister Slaughter tell us I just love. I am grateful to have them as my leaders here. I learn so much everytime I hear from them.

 

At MLC we also found out that the whole mission has to cut back a lot on miles for the cars, so now we basically just drive into our area and bike or get rides, and we have seen miracles from it! There are so many people to talk to and see and it has been such a blessing!

 

Tomorrow we are going on exchanges with Pflugerville, and I am so thrilled because I get to go there with Sister Reece!! It's always the best to go on exchanges with old companions!  I'll be sure to take some pictures!  

 

Funny story from this week. So Brother Johnston in our ward puts up the lights that flash to music for Halloween and Christmas, and he goes all out. Each year the missionaries help him put up lights. So after district meeting on Wednesday, we went over there and helped him. Then we continued on with our day. That evening, we parked again outside of his house and then biked from there. Then the next evening, we happened to park there again, then biked/walked. We had members take us to our coordination meeting that night, and it ran late, but we made it back to our car and Brother Johnston was outside on the phone. And he came over and asked where we had been and told us that he thought we had gone missing and he was worried! He had called a bunch of missionaries in the surrounding areas because he thought our car had been parked there for 2 days straight! Hahaha. So our zone leaders called us concerned about where we were and all that. It was pretty funny. We were just at our meeting. Good times. I'm glad we have a ward that is so concerned about us!

 

I want to share some of our best experiences from this week:

 

Last Monday we received a message from that young man named Tyler that we have talked to a few times and who has been to church at another ward. He's still a bit hesitant to meet with missionaries because he likes moving at his own pace, but he texted us and told us that he knows that the Book of Mormon is true and that he feels the spirit as he reads! He also watched general conference and loved President Monson's talk! It is incredible to see someone who is truly proving to us that they are prepared. And it also shows the power of the invitation. It took his friends inviting him a few times, but he finally attended church, and loved it. And now he continues to progress. I love it!

This week we received some referrals that we were able to meet with. The first one was a woman named Janice, who was a headquarters referral and she asked for a copy of the Bible. We hadn't been able to contact since we first received the referral, but on Saturday she answered the phone and we were able to deliver her Bible to her. She has been going through some hard times lately, and we were able to talk with her about the gospel and the priesthood, and she wanted a blessing, so some elders came over and gave her a blessing. She said after that she felt the power of it and could tell that there was something there. We're excited to meet with her again on Wednesday.

Our next referral was a man named Siddarth that we received from headquarters and he requested a Book of Mormon. We went over there on Saturday night with a member to deliver it and meet with him, and it was such a good visit! Sid recently moved in from Dubai and is from India. We asked him how he knew about the Church, and he told us that his son who goes to Penn State recently got baptized into our church and is dating an LDS girl! He said he was interested to find out if it was right. He asked great questions and was eager to read the Book of Mormon. He said, "You'll have to give me some time to read it all. At least 10-15 days." Hahaha. It was so awesome! We can't wait to meet with him again on Thursday! Our bishop lived in India for a few years, so that will be great fellowship!

 

President Slaughter has assigned us to study the topic of blessings and healings and this morning I was studying a talk from Elder Richard G. Scott called "To Be Healed" (April 1994 Conference). It is such a beautiful topic to study. He talks about how not everything we struggle with will be resolved here on earth, and that sometimes we are to learn to be cured and sometimes, we are to learn to obtain strength to endure challenges. Then comes the part I love---"In either case, the Redeemer will support you." Christ is there for us through it all, no matter what, all the time. He may not be able to heal or cure us in the way we wish, but sometimes he cures our impatience or lack of faith so that we can endure the challenges. No matter the case, He will always support us, because He loves us. As we do our part to come unto Him, to seek His help, we will feel that love. I know that without a doubt.

 

 

I love you all so very much and pray for you! Have a wonderful week!

 

Love always,

 

Sister Snyder

 

 

 

Here's a picture of all of the sisters at MLC on Tuesday :)

New Hope Round 3

Hi y'all!!

 

I hope everyone is doing well!! We had transfers this week and Sister Storms and I are staying here again! Yay!!

 

We had an incredible week!! And this weekend was amazing with conference!! I wanted to share some of my favorite things that were said, they're not exactly word for word, but they're what I got out of it! 

 

 

Exaltation is our goal, discipleship is our journey. -President Uchtdorf

This church is powered by the priesthood to propel us through the unpredictable waters of mortality. Hold on and stay on, and we will reach our eternal destination. -Elder Ballard

We need to be humble enough to ask and faithful enough to act. "What lack I yet?" -Elder Lawrence

Being ship shape is being temple worthy in good times and in bad times. -Elder Cook

Christ will never forget us, and our mothers will never forget us either. Mothers never faileth. Their acts and kindness never will, just as Christ's never does. Mothers and the Savior help us to do what we cannot do for ourselves. Thank you for your crucial role in fulfilling the purposes of eternity. Be peaceful. Believe in God and in yourself. You are doing better than you think you are. In fact, you are saviors on Mount Zion. And like the Savior you follow, your love never faileth.

-Elder Holland

Christ can say the same things to us.---I know what you've been through, and I can help you through it. That is the power of the Atonement. -Elder Foster

The Lord always fulfills His promises. We doubt not the Lord nor His goodness, we have proved Him in days that are past. And in our present day. The more we persist, the brighter His influence becomes in our lives. There is no darkness that is so dark and menacing that it cannot be overcome by light. -Elder Stanfill

Undeniable. -Elder Martino

The cure is our Savior and His Atonement. -Elder Oaks

Repentance is not a fictional experience or the product of a frenzied mind. It brings about a mighty change of heart. -Elder Haynie

When you cannot do what you've always done, then you only do what matters most. -Elder Bednar

The light of the gospel of Jesus Christ will cut through the confusion, the pain, and the darkness, and fuse healing love and cast out discouragement. -Elder Clark

 

 

I could say a lot more, but I'll spare y'all! Haha.

 

I'll share one more experience! At transfer meeting on Thursday, we were doing our usual singing of hymns before President Slaughter and the other missionaries came into the chapel, which is one of my favorite parts of transfer meeting. We were singing Praise to the Man, which is a hymn that I have always had a deep love for. As we were singing though, one of my favorite lines stuck out to me in an entirely different way. I love when it says that "death cannot conquer the hero again." Because of the song being about Joseph Smith, my thoughts are always drawn to him when we sing that line. But instead, this time as we sang, I thought of our Savior Jesus Christ. I thought of His life and teachings, and His selflessness. I thought about Him suffering for me, bearing the pain of it all, and then being crucified. He died, but that was not the end---it was only the beginning. Christ lives today. I feel it, I know it, and it gives me so much hope. Death cannot conquer the hero again, and death cannot conquer any of us because of Him. Spiritual death cannot conquer us either because of Him. I know that it is only through our Savior that we can become who our Father in Heaven has intended us to be. It is through Him that we will live with the Father, and our families, forever. I am filled with deep gratitude for my Savior, and I will forever "waste and wear out" my life so that others can know of what is possible through Jesus Christ and His restored gospel.

 

I love, love, love this work and I am grateful every day for the privilege it is to be one of the Lord's full time missionaries.

 

Love y'all, have a great week!!

 

Love,

 

Sister Snyder

 

P.S. for your viewing pleasure, a picture of my former district with our mustaches.

We ate cow tongue for dinner last night...

Hello hello! How's everyone doing? Shoutout to my sweet brother, Happy Birthday yesterday! Also happy birthday to my sweet companion yesterday! Members had us over for an exciting meal last night and we ate cow tongue. Hahaha. To be honest, it was actually pretty good!

This next week we have transfers. We get transfer emails tomorrow evening, so we'll see what happens! Tomorrow morning Hermana Clark that we live with is fixin to report back to the mission home and returns home on Wednesday! We are so sad! We all watched the moon together last night
and celebrated Sister Storms' birthday and it was so fun. So we get to be with her companion for the next few days in our area and in the Spanish area. It will be fun, but we're so sad for her to leave!

We had a wonderful week! We got to give a training at district meeting, we had some good lessons, and we saw some incredible miracles! Here are a few of my thoughts from our training, from our lessons and miracles, we saw, and from the General Women's session on Saturday. This is going to be a long one, but there is just too much good stuff to not share it! 

I love the expectation that is set for us in our mission, and for our lives, to know who we are and act accordingly. To me, that encompasses all parts of the gospel and tells me that if I recognize who I really am in the eternal scheme of things, I will choose every day to follow and live the gospel and Jesus Christ. If I recognize that I am a daughter of God, that I have a divine purpose, that I am of the house of Israel, and that I have much to accomplish, then every day I will choose to act accordingly. This past week, Sister Storms and I had the opportunity to give a training together at our district meeting about being dignified. We felt that first talking about who we are and being all in was important, because when we know who we are, we will be dignified and do all things how God wants us to. We started by reading from Doctrine and Covenants 133:

5 Go ye out from Babylon. Be ye clean that bear the vessels of the Lord.

8 Send forth the elders of my church unto the nations which are afar off; unto the islands of the sea; send forth unto foreign lands; call upon all nations, first upon the Gentiles, and then upon the Jews.

9 And behold, and lo, this shall be their cry, and the voice of the Lord unto all people: Go ye forth unto the land of Zion, that the borders of my people may be enlarged, and that her stakes may be strengthened, and that Zion may go forth unto the regions round about.

14 Go ye out from among the nations, even from Babylon, from the midst of wickedness, which is spiritual Babylon.

15 But verily, thus saith the Lord, let not your flight be in haste, but let all things be prepared before you; and he that goeth, let him not look back lest sudden destruction shall come upon him. 

I am so grateful that I have made the decision to leave Babylon. To walk away, to run away, into Zion. It is the best decision I have made. Because not only have I made the decision to leave Babylon, but I have made the decision to go to Zion, not looking back. There is nothing there for me. There is nothing in Babylon that could ever bring more happiness than what is found in Zion. Knowing that I have made that decision and that I fully intend to stay in Zion for eternity helps me to know who I am and act accordingly.

Our biggest miracle this week happened on Tuesday and we were guided to the exact place we needed to be. There is a young man named Tyler that we had met at a restaurant who has been attending the ward after ours with his friends. We have seen him around a few times since, and he told us that he has been enjoying church. His friends are incredible member missionaries. On Tuesday we were driving on the road where our church is located, and we saw Tyler riding his bike down the road. We saw him disappear into the church parking lot, so we flipped around and pulled into the church. He had gone there hoping to get a copy of the Book of Mormon and Doctrine and Covenants. He told us that he has truly felt something different at our church and that he was ready to begin reading. He has talked to the elders in that ward and wants to take it slow, but he wants to read and is willing to act on what he knows. He said that if he knew it was all true, he would want to serve a mission too. We were amazed and so glad that we were there to give him what he needed and talk to him! 

Something that we've been focusing on for the past few days has been helping people find answers to their questions through the Book of Mormon. In Preach My Gospel chapter 5 there is a whole section about the questions of the soul that are answered in the Book of Mormon. We have been printing these out and sharing them with people, and we had an incredible lesson with Rachel and Alyssa the other evening. We read a chapter with them to answer their question, and they picked up on what it meant so quickly! it was amazing. The questions and answers straight from PMG are these:

Is there a God? (Alma 22)

What does Jesus Christ expect of me? (2 Nephi 9)

How can a belief in Jesus Christ help me? (Alma 36)

Is there life after death? (Alma 40)

What is the purpose of life? (Alma 34)

Why does God allow evil and suffering to occur? (2 Nephi 2; Alma 14:9–11; 60:13)

Does my infant need to be baptized? (Moroni 8)

Does God know me? (Alma 5:38, 58)

Does God answer prayers? (Enos 1)

How can I find peace and joy? (Mosiah 2, 4)

How can my family be happier and more united? (Mosiah 2)

How can I balance my family and career? (3 Nephi 13)

How can I strengthen my relationship with my spouse? (3 Nephi 14)

How can I avoid the evils that threaten my family? (Alma 39)

How can I avoid sin? (Helaman 5)

Studying these has helped me SO much!!

The last thing I'll mention is the General Women's session that was on Saturday. First of all, it makes me so thrilled for this next weekend of General Conference!! I can't even believe it's here again! Here are some of my favorite things that I got out of it:

-Life is a gift, and God does have a plan for each one of us.

-Because we are His children, we not only need Him, but He needs us as well.

-We must be so careful, sisters. We cannot play with Satan's fiery darts and expect not to be burned.

-The reward is so great, everlasting, eternal, and joyful that we may say to our Father, "Is that all that was required?" We will do anything to return to live with Them when we realize their love for us. What will they mean when the trials are the very things that qualify us for eternal life?

-We each have a glorious work to do. I this cause, we are all valued, we are all needed. The righteous cause we serve is of Jesus Christ, it is the work of salvation. His cause is the good news. It is His sacrifice. Our Savior has marked the path and led the way. If we choose to serve the Lord, we will stand pure before Him at the last day.

-In this work, we may know the pure love of God and obtain true joy.

-Faith turns our whole lives around. Faith led to hope. Faith and hope gave me confidence that one day things would work out. Because of the Savior, everything will be made right.

Faith in the Savior taught me that no matter what happened in the past, my story could have a happy ending.

-Now is part of eternity. We can be happy now.

-May faith fortify every footstep along your way.

I am grateful for the simple truths of the gospel and the changes that take place in each of us as we more fully strive to live them. It is such a blessing to witness people making that change every single day. There is no other way to be happy, truly, truly happy, than by living the loving principles of the gospel. 

 "Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life." (2 Nephi 31:20)

I love y'all and hope you have an incredible week!

Love,

Sister Snyder

Here's a picture of us with Fong this week :)