Hello family and friends,

I hope you all had an amazing Christmas and loved being with those you love and taking a little break :)

Christmas here was fabulous! I got to see my family over Facetime and chat with them for a while, and that was wonderful.  We spent most of the day in members' homes and just enjoyed family traditions and the love of Montanans. In case you didn't know...(which probably most of you don't because Montanans stay in Montana), Montanans are hilarious.  They say it like it is, do what they want, and love SO easily.  And the reason they stay in Montana is yes, because Montana is the greatest place ever....I just love it here in case you couldn't tell ;)

Life is wonderful.  Today I read 1 Nephi 17:20-21.  Laman and Lemuel are angry with Nephi and they say, "if this and this and this hadn't happened then, "...we might have been happy."  I am like this sometimes- always trying to reach perfection to the point where it's hard to see where I have come and where I am at, and loving it.  Sometimes we aren't in a place where we necessarily want to be, but, because of the gospel, we can get there.  God has in store for us more than we can ever imagine.  As we follow him, we progress, step-by-step.  It takes time to become who He is trying to make us.  When we look for the rays of sun, the flowers in bloom (sometimes figuratively speaking...oh, winter... :), the little things in life- then we are happy.  God is blessing us even when things are hard.  We just have to open our eyes to see it.  

How do we follow Christ? How do we let God make of us who we can be?

We live the gospel of Jesus Christ that He has given us in the scriptures (2 Nephi 31):

Faith
Repentance

Baptism

The Gift of the Holy Ghost

Enduring to the End

Sometimes I feel like I don't know enough.  I am not enough.  I can't help these people.  There is not enough time to study! But today, I learned that yes, maybe you don't know enough, and yes, you will never have enough time to study BUT that is ok.  God will help you.  Just keep doing what you can, and His Spirit will guide you.  I have a testimony that God loves every one of His children.  He wants them all to return to Him, and He has given us the way to do that. 

For those of you who don't yet know of the gospel,  start reading the Book of Mormon, and then pray about it.  Come to church and see what we do and learn.  Then see how happy and grateful those people are who live it.  I promise that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is found in its fullness in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  It is true.

And for those of us who have been blessed with the gospel and the way, share it :)

I love you all so much! Keep being amazing! I just am so grateful every day for the people in my life.  Thank you for the packages, letters, and love I have felt this week.  I may not always respond, but that never means I didn't absolutely love it.  It just means I am going to give you an extra ginormous HUG when I see you again.

Keep the faith!

Love always,

Sister Hixson <3