#Dunked!! (Baptized!)

In honor of Michael's upcoming baptism, he took us to the beach for dessert! Ah... Panama City Beach...a little bit of Heaven. But not as close to Heaven as... Something Good: So many good things this week! First! We had a wonderful baptism for Michael! it was so tender and so uplifting! The spirit was so strong and so amazing! I am so thankful I was able to be there to witness something so real with him! He got to the font and asked us where the diving board was..haha! He loves to swim so of course he asked ! It was a funny! We saw Michael every day this week, and I am sure he is sick of us, but it was good! We have been so blessed to be able to see him grow and love the gospel! Oh yes! Another cool thing! Chris was able to come to Michael's baptism and see how it was and he told us that he really enjoyed it! It was so sweet, he had a nice white shirt and tie on, it was awesome!!

This week we had our last zone conference with President and Sister Smith, it was hard and sad to see them go, but we are looking forward to meeting our new mission president and his wife! President Smith has done wonders for this mission and I just adore them both! :)

Also at Zone Conference I got to see my girl, Sister Stradinger! Zone Conferences are so great - they help us keep a perspective of why we are here, the good we can do, and how we can build our faith and determination to keep going. It is also great to see and interact with other missionaries, renew friendships and be uplifted by others serving the Lord full time. It's a good time.

We are teaching a little girl named Videa, she is going to be baptized as soon as we are done teaching the lessons with her, and let me tell you, she is smart and loves Jesus Christ! She is such an example! Overall this week has been full of "peace and love"! The Gospel is true y'all! <3

This photo is of Michael (next to me) then Brother Fast, who baptized Michael. Here is Michael Kobold's story as told by Sister Stacie Fast: "Michael Kobold was investigating and he starting taking the Gospel Principles Class. My husband, Keith Fast, teaches this class. That is how we met him. Weeks of him coming led the Sisters to eventually ask us to have him over for lessons because he had made a date to be baptized and they wanted us to assist in the last few critical lessons. Michael felt so comfortable with us that he asked if Keith could baptize him. He, of course, was humbled and accepted. It is not often a member gets to do this as you know the missionaries most often do living baptisms. It was the first time he had done this ordinance since he baptized his son (my step son) Ryan, who is now serving as a missionary in Arizona. So baptizing Michael was an awesome experience. Michael gave the most precious testimony afterwards. He is a very special soul." A Tender Mercy: A tender mercy! This might be a funny, but in the moment of time, definitely a tender mercy! So! Brother Fast, who baptized Michael, is pretty tall..6'3". So we were looking for baptism suits in the baptismal clothing closet to see if they would fit. We found a few, but we were pretty sure they would not work out. He tried on a few and they didn't fit him...so we all were waiting to see what would happen...and a few moments later he comes out in a suit that fits him perfectly! We where all like.."Uh, where did you find that!?!" And he told us that he just found it in the back of the dressing room! Blessings on Blessings!! I've learned that even the smallest miracles are by far the best miracles, even when it comes to jump suits fitting!

Another wonderful blessing is the members who are so good to us. Michael was taught in the home of Brother and Sister Fast. Here is Sister Stacie Fast with Sis Anderson and me.

And here is another reason why member missionaries or members who love missionaries are so important - they feed us!! Thank you, Stacie! And thank you to all the wonderful people out there who invite missionaries for dinner (at home or out). You keep us going so the Lord's work can roll on! Thank you!!!

Something Learned: Michael asked me if I would speak at his baptism on the Holy Ghost and as I was preparing and reflecting, the thought came to me, the Holy Ghost is a light. We live in a dark world, but with the Spirit, we will always have light in our lives. I feel like I always talk about the Holy Ghost, but man. He is real! I have personally seen the Spirit touch my life and the people around me. No matter what we are going through, no matter how dark and cold we might feel, there will always be a light. "Let your light so shine.." Matthew 5: 14-16 Sure do love this scripture. Jesus is the Christ. He ultimately is our best light in this life. <3

Y'all be good now and always remember, Jesus loves us all! Me, you, everyone on the beach and everyone else, too. :) Sis Nielson!