I can't believe it. I heard the family prayer is coming right along. GOOD JOB!...and Connor way to be the boss. I am so happy!!! I hope you all had a fabulous week, I did :) We pulled off another successful Movie night this Saturday...we had a popcorn machine, and showed Joseph Smith: Prophet of the Restoration on a big projector. Our investigator Maricela came with her 2 kids. She is incredible. She wants to come to everything. The only problem is she doesn't have a car so we have been coordinating lots of rides lately. She is the cutest thing! She lives in a little room in the back of a big house which is her brother's...he brought her here from Mexico with her two kids and her Mom. We went to teach her and brought with us a member who served her mission in San Diego but is originally from Mexico. She had to bring her 3 little girls with her...one of which is just a brand new little baby. We got there and her brother has like 10 huge dogs. They are all tied up but they bark like crazy...and act like they are going to attack you. So, this lady's little girls started freaking out. The mom gave me the new baby in her carseat and she picked up the other and we made our way through the maze of huge scary barking dogs. What people do to share the Gospel :) So we got in this little room and it was probably over 100 degrees. Last time we had taught in the house so we didn't think this would be the situation. But we got down on the cement floor and laid out the plan of salvation...trying to entertain the little ones as we taught. Quite the adventure it was meanwhile sweating bullets. But still Maricela was just engulfed in all this new information about where we go after we die and where we come from. The simple and complete plan our Heavenly Father has for each one of His Children. I look up to Maricela a lot. She has been through a lot. She takes care of two little ones on her own in a Country that is not her own and yet she still has a beautiful smile on her face. I am excited to see how the Gospel changes her life for the better. I believe it already is.
Irma is doing SO GOOD. She is going to be baptized this Saturday. We are so excited for her. She brought her Mom and Sister to church this Sunday and we sure had quite the Sacrament meeting...Dad you know how you are always telling me to take risks. Well, I tried to apply your advice this week. And it worked. :) The counselor of the Bishopric in the Spanish ward came up to us Tuesday night and asked if we could help organize sacrament meeting this Sunday. He wanted to do something creative...to wake these people up and help them remember how important a testimony of the Restoration and the Prophet Joseph Smith. So we offered to invite Irma our investigator to bear her testimony. To explain how she feels about the Restoration. Then we came up with this crazy idea that we thought wouldn't fly in Sacrament Meeting. The counselor was like ya!!! Lets do it...we need to do something different. So Hna Gomez and I were to speak, together. But first we showed the apostasy and the restoration using the lights of the chapel. I was at one light switch and the Elders at the others. With a signal from Hna Gomez we turned the lights off in the chapel. Hna Gomez went on to explain Hermanas y Hermanos the world was in a state of Apostasy without the Priesthood but the people still had the light of Christ...then I switched on a small light...Then Hna Gomez said but thanks to the Restoration (and all the lights went back on) we have all the truth restored in this day. We were slightly concerned about the reaction of the kids...but they all just made this big sigh all at once when the lights went out. It was super fast and I know it sure woke up quite a few people :) So then Hna Gomez and I went on to give a talk together where we basically taught the first lesson about the Restoration in a talk form. I had the privilege of sharing the First Vision...it sure was quite the experience. The Spirit took over that room unlike i'd ever felt before as soon as I started into Joseph Smith's own words. I was super nervous before about Spanish because we didn't have everything written out. But the gift of tongues...the spirit became very very real in that moment. Everything came out so much better than I had planned in my head. Anyways...I know the spirit in that room testified of the truth of the Restoration. And I know whoever in that room was listening with their hearts and an open mind felt it too. I know Joseph Smith was a Prophet of God. I know he restored the Church Jesus established when he was here on the earth. And I know the Book of Mormon will tell you that. And all of that will help you come to know how your Heavenly Father and Savior Jesus Christ really are and how much they really love you...the ultimate goal. I don't even know how to explain to you guys how I feel. But I just want everyone to know how important it is to know for yourself. Not just listen to what your parents or your preacher tell you. Talk to your Heavenly Father about it. He can and will tell you more than any person ever could.
Countless experiences just open my eyes to how lucky I am. This woman who has cancer lost her son this week. The only person in her family that takes care of her. He works in security and was cleaning his gun...somehow he got shot in the head. They don't know...the girl present tells the story. I don't think they really know what happened. We went to visit her with Bishop...many family members were there. We got there and she just broke down. Mexicans show their emotions very freely...i've learned. So the conversation was interesting...she was trying to tell us the story but she doesn't even know what happened. So we just decided to sing her a song. As soon as we started singing the spirit in the room just calmed down. Peace came for a moment and everyone was just tranquillo. Gracias al espiritu. Cool experience. Walked out of there extremely grateful for the family that I have and the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
When things aren't going quite how you want think about this quote I heard from Hna Gomez..."I know God Loves Me, I know that. So what can I learn from this experience." Read 1 Ne 11:7...we don't understand everything but we must know there is a reason for trials put in our path. There is always a lesson to be learned.
Muchas Gracias por todo el apoyo y amor de uds. Estoy muy agradacida por uds. Digame si hay algo que yo puedo hacer...en palabras :) Milagros pasan cada dia..buscenlos... Les quiero muchisimo.
Con mucho amor
Hermana Holanda
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