Hola Fam!
This transfer was a 5 week transfer and so....it ended! The end of the
transfer also means the end of Hermana Hale's mission...Yep, Hermana Hale is
going home :( So by Thursday, all of my Spanish companions that I've had on the
mission will be home! I'll miss my dear friends so much but I know that I'll
see them in just a couple of months.
I'm really sad that Hermana Hale is leaving, we are such good friends and
we worked so hard this transfer!
Anyways..enough of the boohoo stuff, it's miracle time!
We taught Maria Rodriguez (19, married to a less active) for the first
time in like a month...When we sat down with her, she started off by explaining
her financial problems that she's facing..She can't work because she's illegal
and she actually might get deported because she got in trouble when she was
younger...She's been here since she was two but after she got in trouble, her
parents sent her back to mexico...which in the process, messed things up for
the DREAM Act where she could have become a citizen..After her little vent
session, we began teaching her about faith in Jesus Christ. We transitioned it
to having the faith to follow the Savior by being baptized and something
wonderful happened. Maria began to explain that she feels like she needs to
repay the Savior for what He did for her and the way she can try is by doing
the little things- reading, praying, and going to church. She said, "I
think I can sacrifice three hours out of my Sunday to worship because he has given me everything and I can't pay Him back
fully." As she explained her feelings, tears ran down her face and it was
so beautiful to watch her express her feelings and testimony of the Savior. I
reiterated her testimony by saying, "We'll never be able to pay back 100%
of what the Savior did for us..But all Heavenly Father asks of us is our best
and we leave the rest up to the Lord." We asked her about baptism- she was
invited a while ago and expressed her concern of not knowing enough then- and
Hermana Hale said, "last time you said that you didn't feel like you knew
enough, that you were unsure....." Maria jumped in and said, "Yeah, I
feel like if I would be baptized in two days, I'd be going in blindfolded...but
I remember you telling me that if I prayed, I'd receive my answer if this is
true. And I feel like you two being here and talking to me, I've received my
answer that this is true." My heart lept with joy and I was soooo happy
that she received her answer right then and there!
Now for the hard part...ACTION! Every time the Lord blesses us with an
answer, he expects us to ACT upon it.
On Saturday, I read President Uchtdorf's talk on
gratitude...I had a feeling, while reading it, that I was going to have to
apply very quickly what I learned from it. And guess what? I did! That night,
everything seemed to fall to pieces and as I knelt down for my nightly prayer,
I felt the Lord bring back President Uchtdorf's words...Rather than being
grateful FOR things, be grateful in all circumstances. Even when life's trials
knock you down, you will always have reason to be grateful. Why? Jesus Christ
lives! He did what we couldn't do for ourselves and because of this great act
of love, we can return to our Heavenly Father, as long as we do our best and
live the gospel!
Serving as a missionary, I feel so blessed to be able to know the Savior
on a much more personal level than ever before. I know that He lives!
Love,
Hermana Emma Seymour
When you're cold-find a Togan
This is Hermana Nunez...aka Hermana Torta...Every other friday she makes us delicious tortas (chicken sandwiches with avocado, tomatoes, lettuce, and salsa)..She has been doing this for the missionaries for TWENTY YEARS..She takes the bus to the mercado, buys the bread, chicken, veggies everything...and she feeds 8 missionaries every time!
Hermana Fletcher at Spanish Zone Conference
SIMBA
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