And he who receiveth all things with thankfulness shall be made glorious

Dear Family and Friends! 

I love being a missionary! It is the best!

I wrote part of my group email and then deleted it on accident, so this will be a short one ha. 

This week my ponderizing scripture was Doctrine and Covenants 78:19 which says:

And he who receiveth all things with thankfulness shall be made glorious; and the things of this earth shall be added unto him, even an hundred fold, yea, more.

I love this. So this week I am going to write about some things I am grateful for: 

Our new trio! Hermana Gonzalez and I got a new companion this week! Her name is Hermana Call. She is from provo, UT and has been out 14 months. She loves to sing and skate and joke.

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I also got to see some of my old companions at transfer meeting!

(Hermana Riding, Me, Mission President's wife and Hermana Callister) I am so grateful for every companion I have had! Each of them has taught me. It truly is a privilege to serve with these Sisters. 

I'm also grateful for the humor in missionary work. Sometimes, funny things happen to you. And sometimes something funny just comes up, and I think it is Heavenly Father's way of looking out for us:) 

I am also grateful for the miracles. On Saturday it was pouring rain, but we had a lot of faith and had been praying hard that those who were prepared to accept the gospel would find us. So we felt inspired to go to a little taqueria (taco bus). As we walked us and the rain poured down, a man approached us and asked "ustedes son los que hablan de la palabra de Dios?" (Are you the people who talk about the word of God?) He went on to tell us he wanted to change his life, and was looking for help. We told him that is exactly what we do. We asked for his address but he said he didn't know his exact address. He told us to go down the street, take a right, then a left and he lived in a yellow trailer. I didn't have a ton of faith we would find it but later that night Hermana Gonzalez had a feeling we should go look for the house. It was about 7:30, pouring rain and totally dark. I thought she was a little bit crazy. But we went. We drove down what we thought was the street and could hardly see anything. We decided to pray. We asked in faith and as the prayer came to a close we all looked up and said it was the trailer at the end of the street. We knocked on the door and no one answered. Determined, we knocked on a neighbors door. We asked if he knew Tiborcio. He said yes and walked away for a moment. Then Tiborcio (the guy we were looking for) came to the door! He was visiting his neighbor and indeed DID live in the trailer we had felt prompted to visit. 

God is a God of miracles. He does not forget us and we should be thankful to Him. When we give thanks, He showers blessings upon us. I hope we can "count our many blessings [and] see what God has done" for each of us this week.

-Hermana Ries
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Let us take our journey

Genesis 33:12

Dear Family and Friends,

What a great week! Seriously. Being a missionary is the best. This week I have learned a lot about finding JOY in the JOURNEY has a lot to do with stretching and aiming to be better. 

I used to hate running. Really. When I started the mission, I began to run because it was what my companions did. But I was never very good at it because I didn't WANT to be doing it. Eventually I got a companion who taught me that if I chose to like it, I would. I began running and trying to improve and get better. I tried to run a little more each day. And this weekend, our mission President invited us to run in a 5k! And I did it and I loved it! 

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That still isn't a lot of running but, it is improvement. And the joy in the journey was great.

We have also been working with Luis as you know. This Sunday we went over to make sure he was awake. When we showed up, he was already all dressed up fancy ready to go! The gospel changes lives. And all the little changes, make the journey better. 

These are some of Luis's goals. He's a funny guy.

We also got to go to the TEMPLE this week. The Temple is the house of the Lord and helps us stay focused in the journey. It helps us make it back to our Heavenly home. This week I got to go to the temple with Jose! He was baptized in September! It was so fun to see some of my Galveston family again. After the baptisms, Jose was sitting in a waiting room. I walked in and saw him praying. I waited and when he finished, I took a seat next to him. I asked him how he felt. With tear brimmed eyes he said "I am well." 

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Wherever you are in the journey, enjoy it! It is part of God's plan. And He loves us perfectly. The first verse in Come Come ye Saints says: 

Come, come, ye Saints, no toil nor labor fear;

But with joy wend your way.

Though hard to you this journey may appear,

Grace shall be as your day.

'Tis better far for us to strive

Our useless cares from us to drive;

Do this, and joy your hearts will swell--

All is well! All is well!

It is true. I know God lives and so does His son Jesus Christ. They love us! They have a plan! And they walk with us through the journey.

-Hermana Ries

p.s. got transfer calls today and Hermana Gonzalez and I are staying together!!!!!!:) We are so happy!!!!

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he ceaseth not to be God, and is a God of miracles.

Mormon 9:19

Dear Family and Friends,

This week has been a week of miracles! I think that we are surrounded by so many more miracles than we even realize. This week my "ponderizing" scripture was : 

And if there were miracles wrought then, why has God ceased to be a God of miracles and yet be an unchangeable Being? And behold, I say unto you he changeth not; if so he would cease to be God; and he ceaseth not to be God,and is a God of miracles.

As I pondered on this scripture I had a lot of different thoughts. And I learned a lot. I want to share some of the small miracles from this week:

Last week we found a sweet older lady who was in need of some service. She asked us to trim her trees. When we arrived, she told us she had no tools. Not even a pair of scissors. My companion (she is awesome) said "no problem!" And we began working with our hands... This was no small task. After working for about an hour and both of us feeling exhausted with little progress, a truck with a trailer pulled up. It was a couple of hispanic men who were doing yard work for the school across the street. Without saying anything, they walked up and handed us a pair of clippers. The work was quickly finished and we were able to share a copy of the Book of Mormon for these yard working friends of ours. 

Sometimes miracles are small things too. Like randomly this week one of the members texted us and expressed her love for us. This is one of the texts she sent: 

Notice that the little picture next to me is a white girl and my companion is a Hispanic hahaha. She thought it was hilarious.
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Another sweet miracle this week was that one of our friends Luis came to church! He has been inactive for several years. But we have been visiting him and he finally came to church! He had a great experience and during sacrament meeting said, pointing to his chest "Wow I have the same feeling here that I did when I came years ago." 

I know God is still a God of miracles. He works miracles in our lives everyday. My mission, how much I have changed and grown has been a great miracle. 

I love Heavenly Father, and I love serving Him! We are His children and He loves to bless us and provide us with miracles. This week, I challenge you to try to see the miracles in your life! 

-Hermana Ries
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always remember me

3 Nephi 18:7

Dear Family and Friends,

I think one of the reasons we are commanded to read the scriptures everyday is so that we are reminded of where our blessings come from. I think the same is true as we listen to the Prophet and Apostles! We are reminded of the source of all happiness and peace, which is Jesus Christ. 

This week was a week of reminders for me too: 

I got a visit from this sweet Hermana! I was reminded that good friends are important.

We had a family home evening with one of the cutest families on the PLANET! I was reminded that the family is central to God's plan.

I also was reminded of some important things during conference. Like when Elder Holland spoke, I was reminded that mothers are the best. And it is the most important calling ever. I am so grateful for all the mothers in my life but especially my own Mother. As I sat there I felt overwhelmed with gratitude and I realized if it were not for her, I would not be here in Texas serving the Lord. Thank you mom. 

I was also reminded of the love of our Savior Jesus Christ. He has taught us: 

And this shall ye do in remembrance of my body, which I have shown unto you. And it shall be a testimony unto the Father that ye do always remember me. And if ye do always remember me ye shall have my Spirit to be with you.

I know that Christ lives and love us. I know that He has called servants on the earth today! I know that the three new apostles are called of God. I know as we re-read and study this conference and then live it, we will be blessed. I hope we can all "ponderize" a verse of scripture this week! And that we can share our testimony with others.

have a great week!

-Hermana Ries 

whosoever has heard the words of the prophets...are the heirs of the kingdom of God.

Mosiah 15:11

Dear Family and Friends,

It has been a fun week! I am so grateful for the Lord for allowing me to be a missionary! It has been a week of learning for sure. This week Hermana Gonzalez and I made about 100 tamales for fiestas patrias!!!!! 

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Fiestas Patrias is pretty much one of the most fun things on the planet. It is a celebration of all the countries days of liberation. We had food and dancing from Mexico, Hawaii, United States, Columbia, Argentina, El Salvador, Ecuador, Guatemala, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, and more! It was a great opportunity for members to invite their friends, and of course the missionaries all had a ton of fun as well. 

But I am VERY excited for this weekend and all that I'm going to learn because this Saturday and Sunday is GENERAL CONFERENCE! General Conference is the opportunity we have every 6 months to listen to prophets and apostles called by God to help lead and guide us. There is a scripture is Mosiah which says: 

Behold I say unto you, that whosoever has heard the words of the prophets, yea, all the holy prophets who have prophesied concerning the coming of the Lord—I say unto you, that all those who have hearkened unto their words, and believed that the Lord would redeem his people, and have looked forward to that day for a remission of their sins, I say unto you, that these are his seed, or they are the heirs of the kingdom of God.

Um okay WOW! That is a pretty good promise. And it is true. I know that as I have listened to the Prophet, prayed and then followed his councils, I have been blessed. One of the blessings of conference is that we can come with questions and receive answers. Everyone who reads this email, please come to conference with a question and a prayer in your heart, and through the Spirit you can receive and answer from our Heavenly Father. 

I know that Thomas S Monson is the Prophet on the earth today! I am so excited to hear from Him and listen to the Spirit to know the things I can do to put my life more in line with the will of God.

-Hermana Ries

p.s. watch conference here!!!  https://www.lds.org/general-conference?lang=eng

the rod of iron...was the word of God

1 Nephi 11:25

Dear Family and Friends, 

It has been a good week! We are working hard and trying to do whatever Heavenly Father would have us do here. 

Have you ever watched a lizard climb? It is CRAZY. This is outside of our apartment window. I'm not really sure of the science behind this but it reminds me of a scripture in 1 Nephi 15:24 which says: 

And I said unto them that it was the word of God; and whoso would hearken unto the word of God, and would hold fast unto it, they would never perish; neither could the temptations and the fiery darts of the adversary overpower them unto blindness, to lead them away to destruction.

This little lizard was "holding fast" to our window screen. But what this scripture is talking about is a vision of an ancient prophet, who saw a rod of iron that led to a tree which had the most desirable fruit. And the fruit represents the love of God. 

When we hold to the word of God, we feel His love and we are protected from Satan! This week I have really studying The Book of Mormon. Which is another testament of Jesus Christ. 

This week, we were visiting with our investigator A. She is so awesome. She was taught about the Restoration of the Gospel by the Elders and later referred to us. 

As we visited with her we asked if she believed what the Elders taught her. She said she had some doubts after they left, but she and her boyfriend read in The Book of Mormon after and now she feels like it is true. She is getting baptized in October! Please pray for her and her cute little family. 

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I love the Scriptures. I love the Bible and The Book of Mormon. When I was younger I had NO desire to serve a mission. I had very little desire to go to church or really live the gospel completely. The first time I read The Book of Mormon for myself I was 14 years old. I read just 10 minutes a day. And when I finished it, I knelt down one Sunday morning and asked God if it was true. I received the answer that is was. And I felt the desire to share it with others. That grew into an intense desire to serve the Lord in the capacity of a Full Time Missionary. 

I love our Savior. I feel closer to Him as I read His words. I hope we can all read the scriptures and hold fast to them. 

-Hermana Ries

If you are interested in a free copy of The Book of Mormon, go here! https://www.mormon.org/free-book-of-mormon

Have a good week! 

the Spirit of the Lord has called [her] another way

Dear Family and Friends,

This week consisted of goodbyes to Galveston and hello to the new area! 

Alma 22:4

4 And [Hermana Callister] said unto the king: Behold, the Spirit of the Lord has called [Hermana Ries] another way; [she] has gone to the land of [Sugar Land], to teach the people of [Houston 4].

I love it here. Seriously. My companion is Hermana Gonzalez (she is amazing!) and we are opening this area to sisters! They have had just Elders in this ward for awhile. So they are pretty excited to get some Hermanas.

As I said, I had some goodbyes this week:

​The Idiaquez. I love them. 

​Hermana Orellana. One of my favorite Guatemalans in the whole world! 

Hermana C. (we are so weird) One of my best friends on this planet. 

Saying goodbye wasn't sad though. One of the best (and hard) things about the mission is that the work we do is eternal. What we teach people matters now and it will matter forever. And the people I have grown to love, will always have an important part in my life. One of the jokes I frequently make with the people I teach is that I plan on them being my "neighbors" in the Celestial Kingdom. 

This earthly life is so short and so important. But I know that if we are centered on serving our Heavenly Father, that He will make things okay. 

I felt so peaceful about the change because I knew the Lord would put me where I needed to be and where I would grow. It's hard. It's not like the other places I have served and it is a brand new area so it is starting from zero. But Heavenly Father helps us everyday. 

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I know Heavenly Father's plan is perfect! I know He and His son love us. 

-Hermana Ries