Awesome Cheesecake Factory Story

I had such a neat experience a few weeks ago. Shon and I were at the Cheesecake Factory with some friends having dinner. This story has absolutely nothing to do with the food at the restaurant (although the cheesecake is to die for!) but rather, a telephone call that I received during dinner. I usually don't take calls during dinner unless it is a babysitter calling regarding the kids however, during our dinner, Shon received a call on his cell phone, a number that we weren't familiar with. The number began with 44, which is the country code for England. He looked at the number and decided it was probably a wrong number because it was 3am in the UK and who in their right mind would be calling us that late. About 5 min later he received another call from the same number. A few min. later he received a 3rd call and figured, ok, someone must be trying to reach us. Shon answered the phone and it was for me. When I said hello, all I could hear was "Hiya,....Zara....I'm.....through temple......next month."

Now let me tell you about Zara. She is a girl that I met while serving in my first area of my mission called Todmorden. It is a small town, a village really, and she was one of the first people I me there. Zara was 16 years old at the time, she lived with her mother who was a drug addict and they were both members of the LDS church but struggled because of circumstance. We worked hard with Zara and I really felt that she had a testimony but she didn't know how to overcome some of her struggles. My companion(s) and I prayed so much for her. After I returned from my mission, I kept in touch with Zara on occasion to see how she was, how her mum was and do what I could to help her. About 4 years ago, Zara called me and told me that she was pregnant with her second child, and living with the father. I was crushed. I remembered thinking to myself, how could I ever help her? I told her I loved her and to keep in touch.

A little over a year ago, I heard from a friend who lived in the same town as Zara, and heard that she'd had a stroke (at age 22) and was in the hospital, the prognosis didn't look good. I had completely lost touch with her and felt helpless, unable to do anything for her. I tried to find out the status of her situation but wasn't successful. I thought of her often, and hoped that everything would turn out okay. That evening when I received the phone call from Zara I ran outside and asked her to repeat what she had previously said.....

"Sister Critchfield, I am married, I just had a baby and we are being sealed together as a family in the temple on June 19." I was in shock. I made her share her story with me. After Zara had her stroke, she told me she had "a real awakening" and knew she needed to change. After she eventually left the hospital she decided to attend church on Sunday which is when she became reacquainted with a guy that lived in a neighboring ward. They later got married and are now being sealed in the temple. I was so full of joy. As I spoke to Zara I could hear the joy she had in her voice. What an incredible miracle. Here is a young girl that I worried about so much, prayed for, cried with and hoped that one day would be able to find the strength to overcome all the obstacles that stood in her way, and believe me there were and probably are many still. But deep down, I knew that the Spirit had touched Zara's heart, that she believed in the Savior and probably didn't realize until her stroke just how much she needed Him. I am overcome with emotion and gratitude for her. God is so good. He knows us. He knows what we need in order to humble ourselves to come to Him and His Son. I am so grateful to know my friend Zara. She is such a strength and example to me. There is so much to learn during this journey and I hope she stays with it. It is such an incredible experience to see someone you love finally understand the worth of who they are and commit to change and follow the Savior. I am so grateful to Him for the power He gives us to repent and become better. I feel this blessing everyday and I am grateful my friend Zara has experienced this in her life. God truly is a God of miracles.