Elder Duane and Sister Jan Gibbons: May 14th through May 19th

One of my favorite songs ever is Louis Armstrong's song, "What A Wonderful World." Not only does it remind me of my Dad, it brings gratitude and the Spirit of the Lord into my heart everytime I hear it. It describes so much of what I feel about this world and even now experience such feelings everyday here in the beautiful State of Michigan. Literally every mile we drive and every road we traverse is a reminder of God's love for us through the beauty he created.

"I see trees of green, red roses too.

I see them bloom for me and you.

I see skies of blue and clouds of white.

The bright blessed day, the dark sacred night.

The colors of the rainbow so pretty in the sky.

Are also on the faces of people going by.

I see friends shaking hands saying, "How do you do?"

They're really saying I love you.

I hear babies crying, I watch them grow.

They'll learn much more than I'll ever know.

And I think to myself what a wonderful world."

This past weekend we drove to Traverse City to attend our District Conference. (This is like Stake Conference back home, but with small Branches instead of Wards.) We can testify that The Church of Jesus Christ is led by the same authority, taught in the same way, with the same truths and that gathering together as a people brings great joy and connection no matter where one is in the world. The church building was full and many more who could not travel the long distances to attend watching from home by Zoom.

I want to share one portion of one of the true stories told about this area. It shows how the Lord's hand, and miracles, are in this work. It shows that He knows His children and He loves each of us and His ultimate desire is that each of us have a chance to learn of Him and His Son in order to return back to their presence. Hearing this story touched my missionary heart and gave me a renewed and greater desire to spend everyday of my mission seeking those whom God has prepared to receive His Gospel.

Many years ago (in the 1980's) the woman speaking attended a meeting where a General Authority told that as a young missionary he was sent to Traverse City. It was a time when the mission boundaries were much larger, taking in more than one state. His Mission President sent him and another Elder on a long bus ride to Traverse City in order to officially close down the missionary work. The Church at the time didn't have sufficient members to support even a "group." After several hours of riding, the Elders stepped off the bus and walked three miles down a dusty road. They saw a woman in her yard fall to her knees and call back to her husband, "We haven't been forgotten!" She saw the Elders approaching and saw their name badges and knew they were from the Church. They had been praying for someone to come. The Elders returned to the Mission home and told the President that they just couldn't do what they had been sent to do. Close the area. They related their experience with this woman. Now, many years later this same missionary was back in the area and speaking to a gathering at District Conference in Traverse City and witnessed the miracle.

The Lord works His miracles one by one and slowly over time. We have been praying for our little Branch here in Cheboygan. They are loving and super supportive of each other, but they need to increase in numbers, especially in men and Priesthood holders. We know that with the Lord's help and direction one day they will become a Ward! Hearing this story helped me refocus my heart and efforts. The missionaries in the great Michigan Lansing Mission pray often that this will happen in the eleven Branches. We are also helping prepare the people in Michigan to receive a new Temple in Grand Rapids. The first in the Mission. This is ALL about coming unto Jesus Christ and being blessed with the greatest blessings the Lord has for His people.

Turning to other events this week...

We had to visit a dentist. Elder Gibbons had his front, top veneer crack and chip. Why didn't I take a picture?! Fortunately he kept the big piece that chipped off and the dentist was skillfully able to put it back together an hour and a half later. The dentist is a member of the Church and when we walked out to pay, he had told his staff not to charge us anything. We feel so blessed and we pray many blessings upon him.

The members of the Branch love to get together and eat when they do. There were four of us sisters with birthdays in May so the RS Presidency invited everyone to go to a little town called Onaway and meet at "Ma's Diner" for lunch. Lots of people showed up and we were showered with love.