¡¡Hola hola!!
Well
everyone, MERRY CHRISTMAS!! It doesnt really feel like Christmas to me,
just because I have never had a Christmas like this before, but I am
trying to enjoy the experience rather than being sad!! Also, pretending
its not Christmas helps too :) jaja. We speak
this thursday!! Whooo!!!!
Okay
well this week was great! Still super stressful, offffffff
couuuuurseeee because I still have to arrange schedules for EVERYONE (or
so it feels like). But whatever because JUANY AND GERONIMO GOT
BAPTIZED!!! I have attached pictures becuase those speak better than
words anyways, right? Well I am just going to write what I wrote in my
journal again..
"Juany was SO nervous. I went with her
where she enters the font and she was shaking and jittery, but she did
great and came out smiling. Geronimo was baptized last (this was a
baptism of 7 people.. it was huge) and complained the water was cold
haha but he did great too. Admist all the crazy I was able to remind
them they were being washed clean of all their sins. It was really
special. Afterwards we listened to the bienvenidas and everything and I
was just wondering what Juany and Geronimo were thinking and feeling. I
was stressed just from all the rush and responsibilities, but I was
wondering how they were feeling. They´re both pretty quiet and timid,
especially in front of other pople so it was really hard to read them
haha, but afterwards they were smiling and proud. I called Jonathan just
a few minutes before the baptism to see if he was coming (Jorge had to
work), and he was asleep! I told him to get on over here, and he came!!
He rushed over on his bike, winded and everything haha. That made me
really happy.
In the evening we went over to their house and
asked him how he felt about the baptism and he was like "I felt like
crying, but I dont know why. I was really sad." Juany too said she
almost cried and had to try really hard not to. Geronimo said he felt
wet.... hahaha. We shared the mormon messages videos by Elder Bednar
that talk about the light of Christ and about the gift of the Holy
Ghost, which I think helped identify the manifestations of the Spirit
they´ve all felt and prepare them fo today when they were confirmed
members of the church and recieved the gift of the Holy Ghost. We
discussed it some and I shared about how the Spirit has guided me in my
life and has helped me make important decisions, like about whether I
should serve a mission or not. I shared about a particular experience
when I was sitting in the library at BYU, trying to decide so many
things about my life (nursing program, mission, going home for the
summer, etc.) and I felt the Spirit so strongly manifest to me what I
should do. I was surrounded by lots of people in the library, and there I
recieved personal revelation, which has led me to where I am now.
Today
in church they were confirmed members of the church and recieved the
gift of the Holy Ghost. I was so happy. My heart, and my face, were just
smiling. Juany and Geronimo were beaming too. There is just this new
light in them I lent Juany a skirt too and she looked really nice :). We
took pictures after church and I really love them. I even got one with
every member of the familing smiling (even Jorge!) It took some proding,
but I asked them to cooperate because its for my family and that seemed
to do the trick. Although Juany was just smiling the whole time
anyways."
Well hopefully that helps yall feel a little more part of it. We´ll talk more
on Thursday! But it was a good day!!
Another
awesome experience that I had this week was like we went to visit a
less active that we recently found (she moved houses and the church
didnt have record of it.. some other missionaries contacted her in the
street and discovered shes a member). Shes in her 20s and divorced and
stopped going to church when her mom passed away. (she was baptized 7
years ago, along with her mom and brother, but no one else in the family
joined). We visited for a little bit until she felt comfortable and
then gave a message on prayer. It was a pretty normal lesson, but I felt
really good about it and I felt the Spirit put questions in my mind...
so I headed the promptings and asked her how she used to feel when she
would pray. She answered that she felt at peace and such. I then asked
her if she felt like she was lacking that now in her life to which she
almost immediately, and very sincerely, answered yes. We finished the
lesson and I asked her to give the closing prayer. She accepted and only
a few sentence into the prayer she started crying and couldnt go on. We
just stayed quiet and when she collected herself she finished the
prayer, thanking that we had come. When she finished, I just looked her
in the eyes and saw that she felt the Spirit so strong. I dont know her
at all, but through the Spirit we were edified together, like it says in
DyC 50, and as I looked into her eyes I felt this love for her. As we
left her house I just felt so at peace. THIS is why I came on a mission.
Sometimes as missionaries we just go day to day, working and contacting
and teaching, but you dont always feel like you are doing something
important. A lot of the time you are just another person. But there are
times like this when you FEEL like a missionary and those are the
moments when you say "Yeah!! This is what its about!!", but its not a
boasting feeling. Its just a feeling of happiness and gratitude.
Other little things that happened this week is that
my companion, Hermana Rebolledo, is still in reposo (rest?) and doesnt
work with us. But Hermana Abanto has stayed with us and has been made my
permanent companion for the rest of the transfer!! Thats until like
January 6th
or something and I am pretty stoked. Hermana Rebolledo might be able to
start working with us after Christmas. We had interviews with President
this past week, which were good, and he told me that its likely that
Hermana Abanto and I will stay together the next transfer which I
realllyyyy hope is true. He said no promises haha, but it was likely. He
asked me if I wanted to stay here in Sabinas or go somewhere else and I
said I didnt know, but I would like to work Hermana Abanto so we´ll see
haha.
Well that was a super long email haha but I
attached another photo too of the "breakfast" we made this morning
hahahah. It was really good and I feel horrible about my health. I
promise I eat better than this normally in our apartment, but hey guess
what.. I made the flautas..! Yeah. P.S. dont judge my weight gain. i
dont want to hear ANYTHING until yall serve a mission in northern
Mexico...
LOVE YOU ALL AND CANT WAIT TO TALK TO
THURSDAY!!
Mucho amor,
Hermana Roberts
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