This week was so amazing! It's been so great being companions with Hermana Jensen because we both finally have the opportunity to just teach and follow the spirit in the lessons. It's sometimes hard to get a word in when your companion doesn't completely trust your Spanish but now it's a necessity to just talk and answer every question that comes your way.
This week we met and taught amazing people with sincere desires to search and find the answers to their questions and we just so happened to have all the answers they were looking for! We met Jonathon this week who lived for 14 years in the United States so he wanted to talk to us only in English. It was such a weird lesson because Hna Jensen and I are so used to talking in Spanish and especially teaching in Spanish that it was actually really, really hard for us to do so. Jonathon had a near death experience a few years ago and now he is on a search for the truth. He changed his life and starting looking for the true church. He went to EVERY church you could imagine...except the true one. Haha He was really excited to see us because he said that he was thinking about how he had never investigated the Mormon church when two Mormon Missionaries walked by. Jonathon has SO many questions but it was amazing for me to see and feel that to every question he had, we had an answer! He was so curious that at the end of the lesson I ended up just giving him the folletos for Restoration, Plan of Salvation and Gospel of Jesus Christ because he needed all three! And he is really excited to read the Book of Mormon.
Thursday this week we went to Veracruz again! I can't go a week without going back there haha But this week it was to say goodbye to Presidente Treviño. We had a conference with him and his family and it was so sad! He has been such a great Mission President and it's honestly a little scary to think about getting a new one but I know it's definitely time for change here in this mission and I'm excited to see what kind of changes Presidente Cordova brings. The conference was amazing and I've learned so much from President and Hermana Treviño in the last 5 months. They have honestly been like parents to us in the mission and everyone is going to miss them so much!
After we got back from Veracruz on Thursday Hermana Tonita from the ward called me and asked if we could come to a FHE with her and her husband and her husbands cousin and his wife. We headed right over and had a great lession with Jose and Isabel about the Book of Mormon! Jose told us that a month ago he started listening to the Elders and they only came over about twice because he just didn't have much interest. But he told us he's changed his mind and invited us over to meet his son and his daughter and teach his whole family! (The power of Sister Missionaries! haha) So Saturday night we went over and met his son and daughter who are 15 and 21. They both know really good English so their parents wanted us to all talk in English which lasted for about 5 minutes haha It's so funny how much everyone LOVES to practice their English with us. The lesson was amazing! We taught them about the Restoration and Jose has a lot of questions but they all felt the spirit so strongly when we talked about Joseph Smith and their family is really excited for us to come over again! The power of Member referrals too! This week we receieved so many referrals and it's so amazing to have the support of the members in this way!
Saturday we also had the by far best lession I've ever had on the mission too. On wednesday we were walking to an investigatores house on a street we always walk on. He wasn't home so we felt impressed to keep walking down the street and contact further. We always turn around at a certain point but this day we just felt the spirit pulling us down the street. And we found absolutely no on! We aren't allowed to knock on doors so we were seriously wondering why we were so lead by the spirit to this area when a girl named Mayra and her friend left their house and started talking outside. We both immediately went over and started talking to them and they invited us back on Saturday but they hardly had any interest. Saturday we were walking to go visit them when I thought "They aren't even interested! We should just go try and find this other investigator that lives near by" When suddenly that same spirit came over me and so we pressed on to visit Mayra.
We walked past their house and there was what looked like to be a party going on. So many people talking and doing things in their little patio area. We walked up and asked if Mayra was home and they all told us no and asked why we were there. We told them that we were missionaries and that we had talked to Mayra and she had invited us back to share a message about Jesus Christ with her. The Sanchez family immediately pulled us up chairs and the Mom called all her grandchildren over to listen to us. It was about 15 people in total (counting the 9 little kids) And we started talking about Eternal Families and about the Gospel of Jesus Christ with them. They all were crying and it was so emotional! The mom, Antonia told us that she NEVER listens to missionaries or people when they come by but she just felt such a necessity to listen to us. It was such an amazing lesson and at the end we invited them all to baptism and Antonia told us YES! But that she needs to invite the rest of her family to come and listen to us. It was such a wonderful lession and the spirit was so strong. At the end Jaqueline one of the daughters of Antonia prayed and it was the most heartfelt prayer I think I've ever heard. At the end of it everyone was crying.
I love moments like this that make you just realize how blessed you are to be a missionary and bring and invite this peace, joy and Spirit of the gospel into people's lives! It's a feeling unlike any other! Sunday Misael was confirmed and he later asked us what he needs to do to be a missionary in 2 years! It was such an amazing week with so many rewarding moments! I wouldn't change my time here as a missionary for anything! My testimony of the gospel grows so much each and every day.
This week we met and taught amazing people with sincere desires to search and find the answers to their questions and we just so happened to have all the answers they were looking for! We met Jonathon this week who lived for 14 years in the United States so he wanted to talk to us only in English. It was such a weird lesson because Hna Jensen and I are so used to talking in Spanish and especially teaching in Spanish that it was actually really, really hard for us to do so. Jonathon had a near death experience a few years ago and now he is on a search for the truth. He changed his life and starting looking for the true church. He went to EVERY church you could imagine...except the true one. Haha He was really excited to see us because he said that he was thinking about how he had never investigated the Mormon church when two Mormon Missionaries walked by. Jonathon has SO many questions but it was amazing for me to see and feel that to every question he had, we had an answer! He was so curious that at the end of the lesson I ended up just giving him the folletos for Restoration, Plan of Salvation and Gospel of Jesus Christ because he needed all three! And he is really excited to read the Book of Mormon.
Thursday this week we went to Veracruz again! I can't go a week without going back there haha But this week it was to say goodbye to Presidente Treviño. We had a conference with him and his family and it was so sad! He has been such a great Mission President and it's honestly a little scary to think about getting a new one but I know it's definitely time for change here in this mission and I'm excited to see what kind of changes Presidente Cordova brings. The conference was amazing and I've learned so much from President and Hermana Treviño in the last 5 months. They have honestly been like parents to us in the mission and everyone is going to miss them so much!
After we got back from Veracruz on Thursday Hermana Tonita from the ward called me and asked if we could come to a FHE with her and her husband and her husbands cousin and his wife. We headed right over and had a great lession with Jose and Isabel about the Book of Mormon! Jose told us that a month ago he started listening to the Elders and they only came over about twice because he just didn't have much interest. But he told us he's changed his mind and invited us over to meet his son and his daughter and teach his whole family! (The power of Sister Missionaries! haha) So Saturday night we went over and met his son and daughter who are 15 and 21. They both know really good English so their parents wanted us to all talk in English which lasted for about 5 minutes haha It's so funny how much everyone LOVES to practice their English with us. The lesson was amazing! We taught them about the Restoration and Jose has a lot of questions but they all felt the spirit so strongly when we talked about Joseph Smith and their family is really excited for us to come over again! The power of Member referrals too! This week we receieved so many referrals and it's so amazing to have the support of the members in this way!
Saturday we also had the by far best lession I've ever had on the mission too. On wednesday we were walking to an investigatores house on a street we always walk on. He wasn't home so we felt impressed to keep walking down the street and contact further. We always turn around at a certain point but this day we just felt the spirit pulling us down the street. And we found absolutely no on! We aren't allowed to knock on doors so we were seriously wondering why we were so lead by the spirit to this area when a girl named Mayra and her friend left their house and started talking outside. We both immediately went over and started talking to them and they invited us back on Saturday but they hardly had any interest. Saturday we were walking to go visit them when I thought "They aren't even interested! We should just go try and find this other investigator that lives near by" When suddenly that same spirit came over me and so we pressed on to visit Mayra.
We walked past their house and there was what looked like to be a party going on. So many people talking and doing things in their little patio area. We walked up and asked if Mayra was home and they all told us no and asked why we were there. We told them that we were missionaries and that we had talked to Mayra and she had invited us back to share a message about Jesus Christ with her. The Sanchez family immediately pulled us up chairs and the Mom called all her grandchildren over to listen to us. It was about 15 people in total (counting the 9 little kids) And we started talking about Eternal Families and about the Gospel of Jesus Christ with them. They all were crying and it was so emotional! The mom, Antonia told us that she NEVER listens to missionaries or people when they come by but she just felt such a necessity to listen to us. It was such an amazing lesson and at the end we invited them all to baptism and Antonia told us YES! But that she needs to invite the rest of her family to come and listen to us. It was such a wonderful lession and the spirit was so strong. At the end Jaqueline one of the daughters of Antonia prayed and it was the most heartfelt prayer I think I've ever heard. At the end of it everyone was crying.
I love moments like this that make you just realize how blessed you are to be a missionary and bring and invite this peace, joy and Spirit of the gospel into people's lives! It's a feeling unlike any other! Sunday Misael was confirmed and he later asked us what he needs to do to be a missionary in 2 years! It was such an amazing week with so many rewarding moments! I wouldn't change my time here as a missionary for anything! My testimony of the gospel grows so much each and every day.