May 26, 2014

Saying goodbye to the familia E - Gonna miss those guys!

Our zone last transfer - I stand out just a little bit...

There´s my new comp up front - we taught noche de hogar this week and a ton of people came! woohoo!

We made a birthday cake for this little guy - he is one of the kids of the familia S - M`s family.

¡Hola mi familia!

As always, so good to hear from you. Sounds like a fun week together in Connecticut! 

I had a wonderful week as well. Of course it has been an adjustment to a new companion, but she is awesome. Her name is Hermana Harrison, she is from California and has one transfer more than me on the mission. She is a hard worker and we have already seen success together! It is great to be able to learn from someone else who has different talents. Another good thing that we do that I didn`t do with hna Tovar is we ALWAYS are speaking in spanish. It has already helped me! 

As for the investigators, we had a great week. L and E are still doing great, the members are doing an awesome job being their friends, and they are progressing so well. This week L was talking about the changes she seen in herself since we`ve started - greater spiritual understanding and sensitivity to name a few. And cute E is just as excited to go to church as ever! 

This week we started teaching K, who was found the week before in the less-active rescue activity. Her mom was baptized many years before and Kenya has a huge desire to learn about the church and figure it out for herself! She is 19 years old. We have had some great lessons with her, she is so eager to learn and asks lots of questions. What a huge blessing! 

The sad part of the week was that randomly, out of the blue, the E family decided to move to Bahia where her mom has an apt. I was kinda crushed but I know that they will continue there - we are sending their information so the missionaries there can visit them. Saturday night we passed by, helped pack a bit, and I said goodbye. They are so sweet and both V and N were crying. Oh man I hate goodbyes!

But back on the happier note, this week we started visiting M, a less active lady who is super cool. She owns a small shop, and a non member friend is always there and has been listening in. We had a great first visit, she really opened up, and when we saw her again she said our visit had done a ton of good and that she started reading the Book of Mormon again! woohoo!!

So basically thats the long story short. Its been a great week full of work! This sunday something funny/cool happened. So we found out saturday night  that we were to give talks the next day. I had no idea what I should speak on, and it was 8 in the morning sunday and I had to figure it out. I kneeled and asked Heavenly Father which topic I should prepare. As I waited the word "faith" came into my mind. So thats what I prepared! I love that topic - such a small word has such important meanings. One of my favorite quotes that I shared was this - "brothers and sisters, be of good cheer. The future is as bright as your faith". - Thomas s. Monson. So many are fearful of the sad things happening in the world all around but faith is the power to go out each day and face the world with a smile! Faith is power. Anyways, Elder Chauque spoke after me and talked about hope, using many of the same references I did. Then the elders taught gospel principles and the lesson was on faith! And then 3rd hour a big theme was faith too. Apparently the members and investigators needed a message of faith!!! There is no coincidence there.

The church is true!!!!

love you all,

Hermana Nelson

The End of an Era

¡Hola Familia!

Well, after 4 transfers making it through untouched, change has finally made its way to us. Hermana Tovar left last night at 12 pm for Mar del Plata. I am here staying with hermana Guenofil until my new comp comes in later today by bus. It was super surreal, while hna Tovar was packing and everything, and then hit like a brick when she was about to get on the bus. It was so so hard to say goodbye to her - she has been the greatest support to me during the difficult times, and we really became best friends as we shared all of our crazy experiences. Fortunately though, we will be finishing our missions at the same time so it was an hasta luego - see ya in 5 and a half months!

I am SO excited though to keep working in Carmen de Patagones. This is the greatest place ever! First of all, during this transition the members have been taking such good care of me. I`ve gotten lots of hugs and kindness. Second, yesterday we had all 5 of our main investigators in church! The E family, and L and E. They are all awesome. The E family is having a bit of a hard time feeling prepared to be baptized, but I have full faith that it will come because they are so awesome. L is super cool! This week we focused on fellowshipping her with Hermana G, and E with B. We have had some awesome lessons, where the spirit is strong. The other day she said that she knows that these things are true! She is so humble, and said that she doesn`t feel she deserves baptism yet. We told her that what matters most is that we are humble and have the desire to follow Christ. Every time we come for a lesson, she has read in the Book of Mormon and has lots of questions. And theres E, who is so excited for church and is just the cutest. Wow. Sometimes I cant believe how much the Lord has blessed us!

We started teaching N finally this week, she has already gone to church twice (but only to relief society). She is kinda a church hopper, she reads the bible and has lots of faith but has lots of confusing ideas. We had an incredible lesson. At first she was just talking so much, about random things that didnt make much sense, of what she understood about religion. But with lots of prayer, we were able to ask inspired questions that led her to resolve those things. It was amazing. We testified of the truthfulness of a true church and she really felt it.

This week we also had a member-missionary activity and it was awesome. We did splits and I was with hermana G, the super legit recent convert. It was so fun! It was like being with a greenie - all the enthusiasm and testimony in the world but not so much experience. :) I loved it.

Anyways, the church is true and the Lord is guiding His work. I know it! Also, I love you all,

Hermana Nelson

May 12, 2014

¡Hola Familia!

I feel like I just talked to you! Oh wait... that`s because I did. :) Thank you for lifting me up so much with your words and testimonies. Seriously, I left that call home not trunky but rather excited for the next 6 months, hopefully I can continue to make you proud! 

This was a great week, there`s a lot going on over here in Carmen de Patagones. Us 4 missionaries are really getting a lot of things rolling and are excited to see the energy and excitement that is growing slowly but surely in the branch. This week we had our first big activity for the youth, and it was a hit! We borrowed a projecter from the district and put on the Emporer`s New Groove. Only the best movie ever. While they all watched, we served popcorn and drinks. A good amount of people came and it was a lot of fun! 

Our main progressing investigators, the familia E (V, N and I) are still doing well. Little I didn`t make it to church sunday because he doesn´t like waking up early. But besides that we still love them so much, still plead with them to read the Book of Mormon together. We had a great lesson friday where V asked us about what the temples were all about and we were able to explain a bit to her about that beautiful, sacred place. That is their goal, as it is for all of us! 

L and E are still doing well, unfortunately didn`t make it to church sunday because of not going to bed until 4 the night before. Sad. But we saw a great miracle with them this week! So E`s mom doesn`t actually live there with them, but in Viedma across the river. But she was there while we were having a lesson and began to make comments and revealed that once missionaries had been visiting her but they lost contact. She said she knew that this was the true church, and that the Book of Mormon is true! We took down her address to give it to the elders in Viedma. This family is amazing - we just keep adding more of them as investigators!! wohhoo!!

So the work is great and the church is true. We only have one more week in the transfer and feel that maybe this time they`ll change things up. Who knows! All you can do is keep working, and thats exactly what we`re gonna do.

Love you all,

Hermana Nelson

Legit young women and lively sacrament meetings

¡Hola Familia!

Happy 5 de mayo! There are about a million and one holidays in Argentina but 5 de Mayo is not one of them. haha. And the food here is nothing like the food in Mexico. Oh well haha!

We had an excellent, wonderful, miraculous week! After a dud sick week, we gave it  our all every day and saw great things happen. Earlier in the week we were in a lesson with L, our investigator, and her young granddaughter who is 11 sat down with us at the end of the lesson. My companion asked if she needed help with any homework (our specialties are math and english) and then invited her to our english classes we have every friday. Then she came! She was pretty shy at first, but stayed for the noche de hogar activity afterwards and loved it. Saturday we had an activity with the young women, decorating our room, and she came again and LOVED it! To top it all off, she came to church, all three hours, on sunday and loved it again! She is so excited about it all, even brought homemade alfajores (delicious argentine treats) to share sunday. She is super cute and bubbly now that she knows us, and will be turning 12 in a week. Plus, she is a huge support for her grandma and now they are learning together and doing so good!!!

V came to church on sunday, but her boys were travelling for the weekend and couldn`t come. We sure miss them when they`re gone! They are still doing well, the only thing is getting them motivated to do their book of mormon readings. We know as soon as they get started reading together they will want to be baptized immediately! That book is amazing.

We had an experience that really affected me this week. So there is a young woman named B.R. who is a convert of almost a year. She is 13, and many of her family was baptized as well but have all gone less active. B however goes faithfully every sunday, to every activity, and has been preparing to go do baptisms in the temple. She is a quiet, sweet girl who has just impressed me so much. This week she came out with us to visit some people. At the end before we parted, we shared a scripture with her about the anti-nephi-lehis - how when they had been converted they were firm and unmovable, just like her. My companion told this girl that she is not alone, however much she may feel like it. That the Lord sees her diligence and faith and will bless her. We said that she has such great potential, will change many lives as she stays firm in the gospel. She began to cry, and hugged us both. She rarely shows such emotion but it was so apparent her sadness of her family not staying strong in the gospel, and having to do it all alone. Hna Tovar and I promised her that we would help her to reach her goals - to get into a byu school, to get to the temple, to go on a mission. I wish I could tell of her story to the world - this beautiful, pure and innocent 13 year old girl who is so virtuous despite the dirtiness all around her. I am inspired by her example. This world is getting worse and worse every day, but we can and must stay strong in our beliefs, worthy of all the blessings Heavenly Father has prepared for us.

Here`s the funny part of the week. So sunday we had two investigators at church, right? Anyways, it was fast and testimony meeting, meaning anyone in the congregation can get up and talk. So there´s this elderly couple who were baptized recently but then went back to their evangelical church at the persuasion of the pastor. However, this sunday they came back! Apparently they realized their mistake, and with the help of loving members they are back. So M goes up to bear her testimony. It starts out all right, just with a little more fire than usual. Then she turns to the president and says, "with the permission of the president, I`d like to sing a song of worship", and starts belting out the most awesome worship song that I`ve never heard in sacrament meeting before. Everyone was in shocked silence. At first I was super nervous about what V would think, and then realized how hilarious it all was. M finished her song and continued thanking loudly all the members by name as she walked down from the pulpit. I got up quickly after her to try and regain a little of the quiet dignity. Honestly, it was the best sacrament meeting ever. haha!

The church is true!!! I love you all and hope you have wonderful weeks.

Hermana Nelson