Well hello there family! Can you believe that tomorrow is my halfway mark of my mission? I can't. I swear I just barely was leaving Twin Falls and heading off to Mexico. I can't say I have loved every single minute, but the past 9 months really have been amazing and full of so many wonderful things. I am excited for 9 more!
Yesterday was Stake Conference and Elder Spackman of the 70 was there. He gave a great talk both yesterday and Saturday night in the adult session. We also heard from our Stake President and he had some great thoughts too. There is one thing that really stuck out at me. He said that many times it is hard to read our scriptures because we feel like we don't have enough time. We feel like we have too many problems, worries, things to do etc. He challenged the stake to double their time by reading from the scriptures every single day. When we read from our scriptures, we can receive revelation that will help us to solve our problems, and find solutions to our busy lives much faster than if we just try to do it all without reading. Basically, if you feel like you don't have enough time to read, do it, so that the Lord can give you the time you need. :) I loved that a lot and thought it was a great thing to remember.
M and A are doing great! A is still as ready as ever, but M was feeling a little too rushed. They decided to wait until June 7th, so that they could both be baptized on the same day. Although we don't want to move their dates, the Spirit really confirmed that this was a good decision. It will be better for them both to get baptized on the same day so they can support each other more fully. They now know all the commandments and are living all of them!! :) The members are doing great at fellow-shipping and we are super excited for them!
This week I also had the opportunity to go on exchanges with Sister Breedlove. She is actually from the same place as Hermana Rawlins- Snowflake, Arizona. They knew each other before so it is kind of funny. We had a great day! Although she doesn't speak Spanish so I pretty much was the only one who talked all day, I learned lots from her.
One cool thing that happened is we met a really sweet mom and daughter from the La Republica Dominicana. First time that I have met someone from there! We taught them the Restoration and they loved it.
There is a member of our Branch who has a granddaughter named M. She is 10 years old and lives with her and her very less-active dad. He told her that she is old enough to make a decision about going to church/getting baptized etc and she has come to church the last few weeks! We are teaching her this week and hoping she will be ready soon! She's so sweet!
Lots of great things are happening here! Love you all so much and hope all is well! :)
Love, Hermana Pierce
Monday, May 19, 2014
Monday, May 12, 2014
Great to see you!!
Hello Family! It was so great getting to see and talk to you yesterday! I love you!!
Haha I really don't even know what to tell you from this week now. Like I told you, M and A are still doing well. We are teaching them tomorrow and Wednesday, they have their interview on Thursday and then we will see if M will be ready for the 24th too. A seriously might as well already be a member. She participates in everything and loves it all. She has faced a little opposition from friends and family but has defended the Church and tells them even though she doesn't know a ton about it, she knows its true. :)
So many doors are continually being opened. The sisters in Burnsville started teaching a family, but they speak better Spanish so we are going to meet them this week. Hopefully it all goes well! We taught the friends of the Montecillo family, R and V, this week. They are both Catholic, but open to learning. What they don't realize is that they are living with the best member missionaries possible :) Seriously, we are so blessed to have some amazing families in our branch.
Ah, I'm sorry I really don't even know what else to tell you! Right now, we are driving a rental car because ours had a recall and will be in the shop for 3-6 weeks. It's awesome because we don't have to keep track of miles. Its a 2014 white Hyundai Accent. Since it is a rental I am the only one who can drive it right now, so I'm hoping that if for no other reason I will have to stay next transfer :) Haha. Seriously though I do hope I stay here for a while longer, now that things are going so well with the Branch. President told us he likes it when he can keep missionaries in the same place for a long time. We will see though! Transfers just happened though and this one doesn't even end until June 11 so I still have some time either way.
Love you all so much! Hope you have a great week! Tell Puppy hi for me and that I hope she gets better soon! :) -Hermana Pierce
Haha I really don't even know what to tell you from this week now. Like I told you, M and A are still doing well. We are teaching them tomorrow and Wednesday, they have their interview on Thursday and then we will see if M will be ready for the 24th too. A seriously might as well already be a member. She participates in everything and loves it all. She has faced a little opposition from friends and family but has defended the Church and tells them even though she doesn't know a ton about it, she knows its true. :)
So many doors are continually being opened. The sisters in Burnsville started teaching a family, but they speak better Spanish so we are going to meet them this week. Hopefully it all goes well! We taught the friends of the Montecillo family, R and V, this week. They are both Catholic, but open to learning. What they don't realize is that they are living with the best member missionaries possible :) Seriously, we are so blessed to have some amazing families in our branch.
Ah, I'm sorry I really don't even know what else to tell you! Right now, we are driving a rental car because ours had a recall and will be in the shop for 3-6 weeks. It's awesome because we don't have to keep track of miles. Its a 2014 white Hyundai Accent. Since it is a rental I am the only one who can drive it right now, so I'm hoping that if for no other reason I will have to stay next transfer :) Haha. Seriously though I do hope I stay here for a while longer, now that things are going so well with the Branch. President told us he likes it when he can keep missionaries in the same place for a long time. We will see though! Transfers just happened though and this one doesn't even end until June 11 so I still have some time either way.
Love you all so much! Hope you have a great week! Tell Puppy hi for me and that I hope she gets better soon! :) -Hermana Pierce
Monday, May 5, 2014
5 de Mayo!!!
Buenas Tardes y Feliz dia de 5 de Mayo!
Fun fact: 5 de Mayo is an American holiday... but Hermana Rawlins and I are still going to celebrate by making some guacamole haha.
This week was a little bit hard because almost all of our progressing investigators had to cancel this week. Despite all the cancellations and no-shows, many great things happened! A and M are doing amazing. We taught them the Word of Wisdom this week and it was a lesson that I will never forget. We brought Hermano e Hermana Montecillo with us and their testimonies were so powerful! The biggest struggle for them is coffee. A told us she loves it and is super addicted to it. Hermana Montecillo was the same way before she was baptized. She bore her testimony of the many blessings she has seen from giving it up. When we first told them the things included in the W.W., A responded. "I'm sorry, I won't do that." However, as the Spirit touched them I watched as her countenance completely changed and by the end she said that she will live all the commandments. She has already gotten her answer that this is the true church and she will do whatever she needs to. :) M also said that he will live it. They came to church again with their kids yesterday and A went up and bore her testimony! It is so amazing how much progress they have made in such a short time.
Manuel and Diana are also going to be coming to the Branch now which is awesome!! Another great moment I had yesterday was sitting in Relief Society. The lesson was on The Book of Mormon and Diana made a comment and bore her testimony about it. I watched A listen intently and could almost see the Spirit working in her. 6 months ago, Diana didn't know if the Book of Mormon was true. Now she has a very strong testimony of it... and that testimony is helping others to come unto Christ too! That's exactly how its supposed to work! :)
We had about 45 people in the branch yesterday even without the Stake presidency, the Clements, and other members who came last week just to see who got called to the branch presidency. :)
What's more is that last Sunday the Stake President challenged the members to bring all of their friends and people they know to the branch so that more people could know about the gospel. Just one week later the Montecillos did that and brought 2 friends, V and R, who just barely moved here from Mexico. Hermano Montecillo explained to them a lot of the basic things about our beliefs and they really liked church. They said they would come next week too and we got them some Books of Mormon and are going to teach them this week!
Like I said, not too many more updates with other investigators right now... The other day though after our whole evening of appointments cancelled Hermana Rawlins and I prayed to know what to do and both got the same prompting to go see R. We taught him and his wife together. She was very nice. We have had an impossible time getting him to read/pray but she saw the Book of Mormon on the desk and started reading it before she even had met us! She's very into her Christian beliefs but we know we have met them for a reason and that Heavenly Father will work miracles in their lifes! Just as He does in all of ours.
Love you all and am excited to talk to you on Mother's Day!! :) Have a fantastic week! ♥Hermana Pierce
Fun fact: 5 de Mayo is an American holiday... but Hermana Rawlins and I are still going to celebrate by making some guacamole haha.
This week was a little bit hard because almost all of our progressing investigators had to cancel this week. Despite all the cancellations and no-shows, many great things happened! A and M are doing amazing. We taught them the Word of Wisdom this week and it was a lesson that I will never forget. We brought Hermano e Hermana Montecillo with us and their testimonies were so powerful! The biggest struggle for them is coffee. A told us she loves it and is super addicted to it. Hermana Montecillo was the same way before she was baptized. She bore her testimony of the many blessings she has seen from giving it up. When we first told them the things included in the W.W., A responded. "I'm sorry, I won't do that." However, as the Spirit touched them I watched as her countenance completely changed and by the end she said that she will live all the commandments. She has already gotten her answer that this is the true church and she will do whatever she needs to. :) M also said that he will live it. They came to church again with their kids yesterday and A went up and bore her testimony! It is so amazing how much progress they have made in such a short time.
Manuel and Diana are also going to be coming to the Branch now which is awesome!! Another great moment I had yesterday was sitting in Relief Society. The lesson was on The Book of Mormon and Diana made a comment and bore her testimony about it. I watched A listen intently and could almost see the Spirit working in her. 6 months ago, Diana didn't know if the Book of Mormon was true. Now she has a very strong testimony of it... and that testimony is helping others to come unto Christ too! That's exactly how its supposed to work! :)
We had about 45 people in the branch yesterday even without the Stake presidency, the Clements, and other members who came last week just to see who got called to the branch presidency. :)
What's more is that last Sunday the Stake President challenged the members to bring all of their friends and people they know to the branch so that more people could know about the gospel. Just one week later the Montecillos did that and brought 2 friends, V and R, who just barely moved here from Mexico. Hermano Montecillo explained to them a lot of the basic things about our beliefs and they really liked church. They said they would come next week too and we got them some Books of Mormon and are going to teach them this week!
Like I said, not too many more updates with other investigators right now... The other day though after our whole evening of appointments cancelled Hermana Rawlins and I prayed to know what to do and both got the same prompting to go see R. We taught him and his wife together. She was very nice. We have had an impossible time getting him to read/pray but she saw the Book of Mormon on the desk and started reading it before she even had met us! She's very into her Christian beliefs but we know we have met them for a reason and that Heavenly Father will work miracles in their lifes! Just as He does in all of ours.
Love you all and am excited to talk to you on Mother's Day!! :) Have a fantastic week! ♥Hermana Pierce
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)