Wonder of wonder, miracle of miracles! We found someone that wants to be baptized!!!
Her name is Diane and she is amazing! She is in her 60s and has lived in Mar Vista for all her life. Her parents were what she jokingly called "jack mormons" from Utah, and they fell away long before they had Diane, who is number six of seven kids. None of the kids grew up in the church, but one of her brothers was converted and is now a bishop, and one of her sisters recently joined the church within the past couple of years, and Diane has seen how it has changed her sisters life. We met her on Tuesday, and meeting her was a miracle in and of itself. We felt like we needed to go see a potential investigator on a certain street, and when we got there we saw that the address doesn't exist. We decided to tract around the area to make it worth our trip out there and hopefully find someone. I always feel that if we are guided somewhere than Heavenly Father has a reason for us being there, so we need to at least talk to one person in every place that we go. So we started tracting and weren't having much luck. The first five houses were empty, and a couple of people on the street rejected us. We finally knocked on a house with someone home but they weren't interested at all. So we said, well, we'll try this one last house by where we had parked our car, and we found Diane! She was so open and friendly and wanted us to come back.
When we called to set up a lesson she asked us to bring her a copy of the Book of Mormon, even before we had mentioned it. We had a lesson with her on Saturday with Sister Larson, this awesome Iranian lady from our ward that converted from being a Muslim and is an incredible member missionary. In the lesson we talked about Jesus Christ and the atonement from scriptures in the Book of Mormon, because she has been going through a lot of hard things in her life right now and we asked her how Jesus Christ had helped her and she said,"Honestly, I don't know." We talked to her about her relationship with Jesus Christ and what he did for her, and how by being baptized she could access the blessings of his sacrifice for her in her life, and then Sister Olsen courageously invited her to be baptized. We ask them directly "Will you follow the example of Jesus Christ by being baptized by someone holding the priesthood authority of God? She said yes, that she does want to be baptized and that she has never been baptized before in any religion, and she thinks that it would really help her. Then the second part of the baptismal invitation is asking to set a date by saying "We will be having a baptismal service on the tenth of April, will you prepare yourself to be baptized on that day?" It is one of the few very specific things we say in order to be very clear and direct with our purpose. So Sister Olsen did the first part like a champ, and then she got so excited that Diane said yes that she said "Will you be baptized April 10th?" And Diane said "What?! April 10th? Really? So soon?!" She was a little shocked, but we were able to explain to her that it was just a goal that we are working towards, and that baptism is just the gate to receiving more blessings and guidance from our Heavenly Father. Cute Sister Olsen after the lesson was like "I'm so sorry I messed it up!" But I told her it was fine. Diane's only concern is not being prepared, because she doesn't realize how much the spirit has prepared her already. She came to church and stayed for all three hours, even though it is painful for her to sit for long periods of time and she is taking care of her son who just got out of the hospital and she was a little worried about leaving him, but even with those possible excuses she stayed! She is so solid. We know that finding her was a miracle that happened as a result of our 40-day ward fast.
Another miracle was that I got to see Leavin be baptized, finally! He is a guy I taught with Sister Garza in Olympic that wanted to be baptized, but that told us that he would do it in his own way and time, and he finally did! Sister Garza and I sang "I Need Thee Every Hour" in Spanish at the baptism. It was so great to be there and see everyone from my old ward. We also saw the Ramos couple from that ward that we went by to visit a couple times. They were a young couple without any kids that have just been in the church for about two years. When I was with Sister Garza we felt really strongly that we needed to visit them a few times, although we didn't really understand why. We talked to them about missionary work and the Hermana told us that she really wanted to invite her nonmember sister to the Visitors' Center, but that she was scared. We took the couple out to an appointment with us, because we thought that maybe we had felt inspired to go there because they would be good to help us with a family we were teaching, but the appointment fell through so we took them tracting for a little bit. The Hermana was really shy and nervous, but she did it and we had a good experience. We committed her to invite her sister to the Visitors' Center and she did, because she said that going tracting helped her to have the courage to invite her sister. So a couple of months ago i was at the Visitor's Center when hermana Ramos and her sister and sisters family all came to the Visitors' Center, and they loved it. Yesterday I saw the whole family again with Hermana Ramos at the baptism, and I found out that they were all baptized last week! It was really amazing to see how something small that we did helped to trigger the process of conversion for this beautiful family.
Things are finally really coming together! I have realized how incredibly important it is to follow the spirit, because in both of those experiences we would have completely missed out on being part of helping these people, but the fact that we did follow the spirit even when it didn't make sense to us and we couldn't understand why gave us the blessing of helping them. And now Heavenly Father gave us the blessing of being able to look back and see some of the fruits of our labors. It is like how King Benjamin says that there is no way we could ever earn the blessings that God gives us, because every time we do something good he blesses us even more. He gives us more than we could ever dream of deserving. I am so happy that I am here serving a mission and serving my Heavenly Father and that I can see his hand in my life and in everything around me.
I love you all! Have a great week.
Sister Dansie
Showing posts with label miracles. Show all posts
Showing posts with label miracles. Show all posts
Monday, March 14, 2011
Mar Vista: Transfer 10: Week 3 / March 8, 2011
Hey family!
Things are finally starting to happen in Mar Vista! People are actually talking to us and setting return appointments! They haven't been following through with those appointments, but still, we're seeing progress! Almost every day this week we had a miracle experience with someone who wanted to talk to us that we had the opportunity to teach. Our first miracle was with a man named Deryl. We were fasting for our day in the ward's forty day fast and we felt really strongly that we needed to go to a certain street in Venice, and when we were there we were rejected about five times and were on our way back to the car when we saw a man across the street. We awkwardly crossed the street to go up to talk to him and said something like "Hey, we're just trying to spread the good news about Jesus Christ." To which he responded "Of latter day saints?" We got talking and found out that he had dated a Mormon girl for about a year and knew a lot about the church, so we shared some scriptures with him from the Book of Mormon and he was really interested in talking about it. We got his info and called him and he actually called back and told us that he was pretty busy working on a movie, but maybe we could set up a time for Saturday. We're still trying to get a hold of him again to meet with him, but that was a little miracle.
Yesterday we were fasting again for help finding people that are prepared to receive the gospel and we tracted into a Chinese woman named Stella that let us right in to her apartment. She has been studying the Bible with her Christian friends and was really open to the things that we talked to her about, even though she doesn't consider herself to be Christian. We invited her to be baptized when she finds out that it is true, and she said that is she knew it was true she would be baptized. We also had a kneeling prayer with her and she offered it, which is always a great sign that someone has a willing and humble heart, and you could tell that she felt the spirit. It was really refreshing to have someone be so kind and open to receiving us in their home. So both of those miracles happened as we were fasting, which is another testimony to me that when we are showing our faith that the Lord does bless us.
I've been having a lot of fun with Sister Olsen. She is really pure and innocent and sometimes says some really great blond things, and we just laugh at them together. She is from a two stoplight town in Idaho called Rigby, so everything is just so new and foreign to her. The other day she asked a random man on the street "Are you a member?" We also had some guys that wanted us to talk to them for a little bit and then brought up the question "Do you practice Celibacy?" Which led to a discussion on the Law of Chastity. They were really nice talking to us, although their minds and their motivations abviously weren't very focused on the gospel. Los Angeles is just getting more and more disgustingly sleazy that the concept of the law of chastity is completely shocking to most people, and is actually the number one issue that keeps people from baptism in this mission. i mean, you should see the billboards around here! Those poor elders. Finding a virtuous woman here really is like trying to find a ruby. Anyways, so we got back in the car and sweet Sister Olsen asks "What's celibacy?" and then after a brief explanation she stated "Well, I've never talked about THAT with a complete stranger!"
The best was when we were at a members house the other day. The member is from Guatemala but is now very into american culture as she has been here married to an american for a long time. I was saying something about how I wished I was latina because they age so beautifully. Then Sister Olsen pitched in and said "yeah, I wish I was luh-teen-oh so i could wear the gangsta clothes and look cool." I was terrified for a second but the member just laughed. And asked how are gangster clothes stylish? Apparently Sister Olsen really likes hip hop music, which is where she was coming from in her mind, but I had to explain to her in the car afterwards that gang violence here is a very real thing and so she has to be really careful talking about it like its cool because most people here actually know someone who has been affected by and maybe even killed from gang violence. We were mostly just laughing about it, but i also told her that she has to be careful to not say things that could be taken as racially offensive. Ha Ha, it was just really awkward all around, and we were just lucky it only happened with a sister that understands that she didn't realize what she said had actually meant. So we've been laughing a lot and having a good time.
Oh, and something else cool is that my recent convert Karina came in to the Visitors' Center the other day with a less active and a nonmenber friend, and she was bearing her testimony to them and her non member friend wants a Book of Mormon and the missionaries. It was so cool to actually see how the small part that I had in the conversion of Karina is branching out into a domino affect as she now bears her testimony and shares the gospel with others around her. She is also the Relief Society secretary in her ward and was so excited to tell me about it. It was so amazing!
Well, I love you all! Have a great week!
- Sister Dansie
1. Sister Olsen's mom made these cute headbands
2. Mini Mission
3. Gangsta Sister Olsen
4. Zone Conference
Monday, January 31, 2011
Mar Vista: Transfer 9: Week 5 / Jan. 31, 2011
Hello Family!
How have you all been lately? I am really sorry that I am so bad at writing personal letters. So, if you haven't heard from me personally lately, don't feel bad, because no one has. P-days are our most stressful, crazy day, and so first off I don't want to write letters rushed, and secondly I am usually grumpy and stressed from having to do everything so fast, and I don't want to write a letter while I'm grumpy. So just know that I love you all! Aunt Natalie, thank you for your family Christmas card and for that really inspiring talk that you included. I loved it! And everyone else that has written me as well. I think that I have started writing some letters to Dave and Paula Thomas, but never quite finished them and sent them off. I love you! thank you for your encouragement and letters! And everyone in the ward that wrote me over Christmas. Falcon Park is such a great ward. I love you all! Alright, so I know that doesn't completely clear me from not writing, but I will try and do better. So yes, I have recieved your letters and I love and appreciate them a lot!
Miracles have been happening this week both in and out of the Visitors' Center. The other day there were two guys that came in to the VC named Edgar and David. They were both from Guatemala, but Edgar moved here about five years ago and David just arrived. Edgar is a member of the church but fell away when he moved here, and David is his lifelong friend of another faith. (They don't want us to use the term "non-member" anymore.) They walked in and I showed them the Christus presentation, and I felt a strong prompting that I just needed to wait for awhile after the message was over. I sat there for probably about three minutes without saying anything, and I could see them thinking and really feeling the peace that comes from listening to the words of Christ and looking at the beautiful statue representation. When we finally started to talk I found out that they have been going through some really hard things, and so Edgar told David that he knew of a place they could go where just walking there would make them feel better. When they walked up to the temple, David told Edgar that he had dreamt of this building and this walkway. They told me that they could feel peace and comfort being there. i told them "Do you realize that this is a miracle? Can you feel how much Heavenly Father loves you?" It was such a cool experience and I loved seeing them realize how much of a blessing it was that they came to the Visitors' Center and felt the spirit, and they agreed to meet with the missionaries.
We also met a great guy in our area named Conrad. We were about a block away from the church, so we left our car there and spent the afternoon walking around the area, visiting and contacting a lot of great people. We were leaving our dinner appointment that we had with some members in a nearby apartment complex and Conrad was out sweeping his porch in his apartment that is about ten feet away and ten feet up from the sidewalk. We saw him and I called up to him and asked "Hey, have you ever been to that church down the street? Well you're invited!" Sometimes my companions are taken aback by my bold ventures of talking to everyone. I feel like especially when we are that close to church, why not just invite everyone to church? He was really nice and he told us that he has been looking for a church to go to with his fiance. He was raised Baptist and she was raised Lutheran, and so he said that they wanted to find some common ground. We found a way over the foliage that separated us from his balcony and handed him up a pass along card with our number and the church's address on it. A couple days later we came back to his apartment and he was there and we had a chance to talk to him about the restoration and Joseph Smith, and he told us that he has met with missionaries in the past and that three of his friends from high school served missions. He still has a copy of the Book of Mormon and he committed to read the introduction. He was so friendly and just a really great guy. We are hoping he will want to keep investigating. The only problem is that he is an EMT and is really busy, which is why he couldn't come to church yesterday. That seems to be the most common problem in LA, everyone is just too busy! I really don't want to get so caught up in being busy that I just miss everything that is most important. Maybe Heavenly Father needed to teach me that, because for those of you that really know me, its like I am almost addicted to being busy. I was in about five different groups and clubs and everything in High School, and looking back, it was great, but I wish that I would have spent more time with my family, and more time serving others.
Also this week Elder Clayton came and gave a really amazing mission conference. He is in the presidency of the seventy. He also came to the Visitors' Center, and I got to give him a tour. Well, kind of just tag along while the mission president and Director gave him a tour because he only had about half and hour to be there and it was all really rushed. It was still cool though.
Well, I love you all! Have a great week!
- Sister Dansie
How have you all been lately? I am really sorry that I am so bad at writing personal letters. So, if you haven't heard from me personally lately, don't feel bad, because no one has. P-days are our most stressful, crazy day, and so first off I don't want to write letters rushed, and secondly I am usually grumpy and stressed from having to do everything so fast, and I don't want to write a letter while I'm grumpy. So just know that I love you all! Aunt Natalie, thank you for your family Christmas card and for that really inspiring talk that you included. I loved it! And everyone else that has written me as well. I think that I have started writing some letters to Dave and Paula Thomas, but never quite finished them and sent them off. I love you! thank you for your encouragement and letters! And everyone in the ward that wrote me over Christmas. Falcon Park is such a great ward. I love you all! Alright, so I know that doesn't completely clear me from not writing, but I will try and do better. So yes, I have recieved your letters and I love and appreciate them a lot!
Miracles have been happening this week both in and out of the Visitors' Center. The other day there were two guys that came in to the VC named Edgar and David. They were both from Guatemala, but Edgar moved here about five years ago and David just arrived. Edgar is a member of the church but fell away when he moved here, and David is his lifelong friend of another faith. (They don't want us to use the term "non-member" anymore.) They walked in and I showed them the Christus presentation, and I felt a strong prompting that I just needed to wait for awhile after the message was over. I sat there for probably about three minutes without saying anything, and I could see them thinking and really feeling the peace that comes from listening to the words of Christ and looking at the beautiful statue representation. When we finally started to talk I found out that they have been going through some really hard things, and so Edgar told David that he knew of a place they could go where just walking there would make them feel better. When they walked up to the temple, David told Edgar that he had dreamt of this building and this walkway. They told me that they could feel peace and comfort being there. i told them "Do you realize that this is a miracle? Can you feel how much Heavenly Father loves you?" It was such a cool experience and I loved seeing them realize how much of a blessing it was that they came to the Visitors' Center and felt the spirit, and they agreed to meet with the missionaries.
We also met a great guy in our area named Conrad. We were about a block away from the church, so we left our car there and spent the afternoon walking around the area, visiting and contacting a lot of great people. We were leaving our dinner appointment that we had with some members in a nearby apartment complex and Conrad was out sweeping his porch in his apartment that is about ten feet away and ten feet up from the sidewalk. We saw him and I called up to him and asked "Hey, have you ever been to that church down the street? Well you're invited!" Sometimes my companions are taken aback by my bold ventures of talking to everyone. I feel like especially when we are that close to church, why not just invite everyone to church? He was really nice and he told us that he has been looking for a church to go to with his fiance. He was raised Baptist and she was raised Lutheran, and so he said that they wanted to find some common ground. We found a way over the foliage that separated us from his balcony and handed him up a pass along card with our number and the church's address on it. A couple days later we came back to his apartment and he was there and we had a chance to talk to him about the restoration and Joseph Smith, and he told us that he has met with missionaries in the past and that three of his friends from high school served missions. He still has a copy of the Book of Mormon and he committed to read the introduction. He was so friendly and just a really great guy. We are hoping he will want to keep investigating. The only problem is that he is an EMT and is really busy, which is why he couldn't come to church yesterday. That seems to be the most common problem in LA, everyone is just too busy! I really don't want to get so caught up in being busy that I just miss everything that is most important. Maybe Heavenly Father needed to teach me that, because for those of you that really know me, its like I am almost addicted to being busy. I was in about five different groups and clubs and everything in High School, and looking back, it was great, but I wish that I would have spent more time with my family, and more time serving others.
Also this week Elder Clayton came and gave a really amazing mission conference. He is in the presidency of the seventy. He also came to the Visitors' Center, and I got to give him a tour. Well, kind of just tag along while the mission president and Director gave him a tour because he only had about half and hour to be there and it was all really rushed. It was still cool though.
Well, I love you all! Have a great week!
- Sister Dansie
Thursday, December 16, 2010
Mar Vista: Transfer 8: Week 2 / Dec. 7, 2010
Hi family!
My new area is so beautiful!!! I have all of Venice beach, which is a really interesting quirky area which kind of reminds me of Yachats, Oregon in a way, and there is this beautiful canal system that runs through this one neighborhood and they all have little paddle boats and canoes that they can take right up to their houses. It is a really fun area. We spent a day walking around visiting less active members and street contacting, and we invited everyone to the free Christmas concerts at the Visitors' Center, so everyone was really nice to us, which apparently is a big change from what Sister Dickson is used to in this area. It is really nice being able to offer them something free that they want. Hopefully it bring them to the temple where they will be able to feel the spirit and want to learn more. Christmas time is the best time to be a missionary! I love how everyone is thinking about Christ and how people are so much friendlier.
We had a miracle that same day as we were walking around Venice. We were trying to find a less active member, and we ended up going right up to the board walk, and we walked along it for just a little bit but then asked each other "Are we supposed to be this close to the ocean?" and then realized as we looked over at a bunch of shirtless people playing volleyball that probably not, so we turned in to a road out of beach view and ran into a woman that came up to us and said "I know you, you're missionaries!" She was from Honduras, and it turns out that she had been investigating there and was about to be baptized, but then moved here and lost contact with the church. She was really excited as to show the things that she remembered while talking to us, like the Relief Society and Joseph Smith. She lives out of our area so we got her information and sent her the missionaries. It was so amazing to find her, and to realize that at that exact moment if we hadn't been obedient and listened to the spirit we wouldn't have been able to have that opportunity and see that blessing. People that are that prepared and amazing from the very moment that you meet them are few and far between, so it is a big miracle to find them, and it increased my faith that there are people who are ready and waiting for the gospel, and literally just don't know where to find it.
Our main investigator right now is named Sam. He is about sixty and he feels the spirit and has a testimony of the Book of Mormon, but he just feels really loyal to the church that first introduced him to Christianity and helped him change his life around. The poor guy has a lot of health problems, and last Monday he had a really bad fall and broke a few ribs and punctured his lung. He is a strong, stubborn guy, so he didn't stay in the hospital for treatment and was just planning on resting and toughing it out. We offered that he receive a blessing and he accepted, so we went over with the bishop and another elderly man from our ward and they gave him sweet blessing of heath. After they finished Sam looked so peaceful, and he started saying his own prayer thanking Heavenly Father for the blessing and for sending us to help him. He really is sweet. I've never seen or even thought of thanking Heavenly Father right after receiving a blessing, and it was really profound and touching. We are hoping he will eventually feel more comfortable coming to church and recognize that this really is the one true way to return to live with God.
The Christmas lights all went up at the temple and are so pretty! We also have free concerts here every night at seven, so it has been really fun. I love being here in the visitors center! On Christmas Eve and Christmas day the Visitors' Center Sisters are performing the concerts, and my companion and I are in charge of organizing everything which has been really fun. i've also been put in charge of making flyers and programs and those sort of things for the concerts, so all of my skills I've learned from working with Dad all my life have really paid off. :) I never thought that the things I learned there would cross over, but i have to do computer and office stuff all the time here. I'm really glad that the lord has helped prepare me throughout my life for my mission, and I know that my mission is preparing me in a big way for the rest of my life.
Well, I love you all so much! Take the First Presidency's advice and don't get too stressed with all of the holiday preparations. Always remember whose season it is we are celebrating.
Hermana Dansie
PS I met Chelsea Hightower! How cool is that? i saw her last night at the Christmas Devotional. I'm attaching a photo.
1. My new companion Sister Dickson
2. We took some glamour shots in front of the temple
3. Venice canals
4. Sister Dickson and I
5. Me and the temple lights. This doesn't show very many of them- there are a lot more.
6. Giant nutcracker at a member's house
7. The view from my new apartment- 6:30 am sunrise
8. Chelsea Hightower! For those of you who don't know, she is one of my favorite dancers from "So You Think You Can Dance?"
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Olympic: Traslado 7: Semana 4 / Nov. 8, 2010
Hola familia!
This week has been so crazy but really good! Norma went back to Mexico, which was sad, but she was so cute- we took pictures with her and she really wants us to visit her in Mexico. We told her that we'd send her information to the missionaries there, and she told us that even if they don't come by she's going to church on Sunday, because she already knows where it is and when it starts and has been wanting to go for a long time and just never had anyone to go with. We were also helping teach two brothers, Andres and Gilberto, but we ended up transferring them over to the elders so that they can help them better. The little brother is kind of shy when it comes to talking with girls. They were planning on getting baptized the end of October, but they will probably be baptized the end of this month. It was kind of sad turning them over, especially when they were the only people we've been working with towards baptism, but like I said last week we had that amazing miracle with Norma and then with Leavin, so it was kind of like Heavenly Father was preparing us for having to stop teaching Gilberto and Andres.
The miracles continued this week too. Sister Garza and I were about to get in our car and leave when I answered a phone call which made us stop, and while I was on the phone Sister Garza felt impressed to talk to a woman passing by with her cute little boy. Her name is Nora, and as they talked Sister Garza found out that she had just gone through some really hard depression because her husband had cheated on her and left her, and she ended up letting us in. She told us that she really wants to change her life, so we felt impressed to invite her to be baptized, and she said yes! She is so amazing, and she recognized that the hard experience she had helped her turn to God for help, and so even though it was hard it was worth it because it has changed her life and humbled her.
We also got to go to the temple this week, and it was so good! It was one of the best experiences I've had in the temple so far. I was super awake and alert, which is usually a challenge for me, and especially considering our session started at six thirty, which meant we had to be up by four thirty, but I was able to get so much out of it. I was praying and thinking in the Celestial room about what I need to do to really reach my full potential as a missionary, and I felt impressed to pick up a bible and open it up, and I opened up to Ephesians 4, and it was exactly what i needed. It talks about the importance of having charity, or Christlike love, and it made me think of Moroni 7:48, which has become my favorite scripture on the mission because it talks about praying with all of the energy of your heart to be filled with that charity, and then in the last days Jesus Christ will be able to recognize us because we will have become like him. i love it because it helps us to see the bigger picture and that goal of truly becoming more Christlike. Its not about just doing good things and doing everything you are supposed to, it is about literally changing who you are to become more like Jesus Christ, because that is what will make us the happiest in the end. I realized as i was sitting there that I had never truly prayed with all my heart to have that charity, and so I did and I felt different. I felt good, and I realized that I was missing out on what the atonement does for us, because i wasn't applying it to myself. I was teaching everyone around me how to use it and seeing them change their lives, but i wasn't changing my own, because I was still beating myself up over things and expecting myself to be perfect and trying to do everything on my own, and not really loving myself. Anyways, so that was my personal epiphany of the week. It helped me to realize how much i am learning and growing, and I just felt like finally! I'm finally getting it! I don't just understand it logically, but I'm actually feeling it in my heart, and because I was so hard and stubborn it took a lot of very difficult and humbling experiences to get me to that point. I still have a lot of things to figure out, but its finally all starting to click.
I KNOW that the Savior loves us and that he wants us to be happy, and that he suffered for all of us so that we can overcome the challenges in our lives and eventually become like him and live with him and Heavenly Father. I am so grateful for this mission and for everything I've been able to learn, and am so excited to keep working hard and enjoy all of it as much as I can.
Have a great week!
Hermana Dansie
This week has been so crazy but really good! Norma went back to Mexico, which was sad, but she was so cute- we took pictures with her and she really wants us to visit her in Mexico. We told her that we'd send her information to the missionaries there, and she told us that even if they don't come by she's going to church on Sunday, because she already knows where it is and when it starts and has been wanting to go for a long time and just never had anyone to go with. We were also helping teach two brothers, Andres and Gilberto, but we ended up transferring them over to the elders so that they can help them better. The little brother is kind of shy when it comes to talking with girls. They were planning on getting baptized the end of October, but they will probably be baptized the end of this month. It was kind of sad turning them over, especially when they were the only people we've been working with towards baptism, but like I said last week we had that amazing miracle with Norma and then with Leavin, so it was kind of like Heavenly Father was preparing us for having to stop teaching Gilberto and Andres.
The miracles continued this week too. Sister Garza and I were about to get in our car and leave when I answered a phone call which made us stop, and while I was on the phone Sister Garza felt impressed to talk to a woman passing by with her cute little boy. Her name is Nora, and as they talked Sister Garza found out that she had just gone through some really hard depression because her husband had cheated on her and left her, and she ended up letting us in. She told us that she really wants to change her life, so we felt impressed to invite her to be baptized, and she said yes! She is so amazing, and she recognized that the hard experience she had helped her turn to God for help, and so even though it was hard it was worth it because it has changed her life and humbled her.
We also got to go to the temple this week, and it was so good! It was one of the best experiences I've had in the temple so far. I was super awake and alert, which is usually a challenge for me, and especially considering our session started at six thirty, which meant we had to be up by four thirty, but I was able to get so much out of it. I was praying and thinking in the Celestial room about what I need to do to really reach my full potential as a missionary, and I felt impressed to pick up a bible and open it up, and I opened up to Ephesians 4, and it was exactly what i needed. It talks about the importance of having charity, or Christlike love, and it made me think of Moroni 7:48, which has become my favorite scripture on the mission because it talks about praying with all of the energy of your heart to be filled with that charity, and then in the last days Jesus Christ will be able to recognize us because we will have become like him. i love it because it helps us to see the bigger picture and that goal of truly becoming more Christlike. Its not about just doing good things and doing everything you are supposed to, it is about literally changing who you are to become more like Jesus Christ, because that is what will make us the happiest in the end. I realized as i was sitting there that I had never truly prayed with all my heart to have that charity, and so I did and I felt different. I felt good, and I realized that I was missing out on what the atonement does for us, because i wasn't applying it to myself. I was teaching everyone around me how to use it and seeing them change their lives, but i wasn't changing my own, because I was still beating myself up over things and expecting myself to be perfect and trying to do everything on my own, and not really loving myself. Anyways, so that was my personal epiphany of the week. It helped me to realize how much i am learning and growing, and I just felt like finally! I'm finally getting it! I don't just understand it logically, but I'm actually feeling it in my heart, and because I was so hard and stubborn it took a lot of very difficult and humbling experiences to get me to that point. I still have a lot of things to figure out, but its finally all starting to click.
I KNOW that the Savior loves us and that he wants us to be happy, and that he suffered for all of us so that we can overcome the challenges in our lives and eventually become like him and live with him and Heavenly Father. I am so grateful for this mission and for everything I've been able to learn, and am so excited to keep working hard and enjoy all of it as much as I can.
Have a great week!
Hermana Dansie
Monday, November 1, 2010
Olympic: Traslado 7: Semana 3 / Nov. 1, 2010
Hola Familia!
This week was amazing! We had some incredible miracles that came out of nowhere!
Our mission President issued a challenge to commit at least one more person to set a baptismal date in this next week, and right after our training we headed over to an appointment with a woman named Norma. The day before Sister Garza and Sister Williamson tracted into her while I was on splits in Echo Park with Sister Nef. Even though it had only been one day she had read the entire pamphlet about the Gospel of Jesus Christ. She told us that she especially liked the part on baptism, and that she really wants to be baptized so she can overcome her past sins, and even though she was baptized in the Catholic church, now that she's an adult she wants a baptism that is "stronger." She just said that she wants a little more knowledge, but she loves and believes everything she read. She believes that we are the answer to her prayers, because Sister Garza and Sister Williamson knocked literally right after she had prayed for guidance. The only problem is that she is only in town for a little bit visiting her niece, but she said that she has always been tempted to go to the Mormon church by her house in Mexico, but she just couldn't get anyone to go with her. She is so amazing! We are hoping she will find a way to stay here a little longer, but if not we are going to teach her and get her ready in the meantime, because she is so excited.
The next day we went over to meet with Leavin. We met him a while ago but have had a really hard time getting a hold of him because of his schedule with work and school. I saw him in the Visitor's Center last Sunday and talked to him about coming to church and meeting with us, and he was able to change things with his work so that he can come to church on Sundays from now on. When we went over for the lesson he told us about how he wants to change his life and get rid of all of his heavy metal music and black clothes and just start fresh. We asked him a lot of inspired questions (that's part of the new method- it involves truly listening and waiting to be prompted with questions from the spirit to find out their real concerns.) We taught him about baptism, and before we could even finish giving the commitment he said yes. His only concern is that he wants to be prepared to really commit and "live the rules." He also feels like we are the answer to his sincere prayers for guidance, and that he wants to have the peace and happiness that he can see that we have. He's been to the Visitor's Center a few times and says that he feels the people there are "mas puro y tranquilo," (more pure and calm) and he wants that in his life.
We feel blessed to be able to teach these amazing people! Heavenly Father has been really good to us.
For Halloween we didn't do anything too exciting. I dressed up as Sister Garza and she dressed up as me, aka, we just switched our tags. :D We went to church and the sacrament program was all about missionary work, so some missionaries gave the talks and we all sang a musical number "Nearer my God to Thee." All of the missionaries had to be in there apartments or in an activity with their zone by six, because it can be pretty dangerous to be out and about, especially with all of the drinking and crazy people in LA. Speaking of which, I went to splits in Down town LA! It was my first time down town and I'm sure I looked like a little podunk Utah girl walking around with all of these fashionable people. I don't think i could handle living in the City. Everything is man-made- even the nature. Its sad because the people just seem so empty. Money is not fulfilling and not worth it! What are these people really living for? A member took us out for dinner at a nice restaurant and everyone was drinking, and it was just really sad for me to think of them and their unfulfilled lives. I'm really glad that this mission is helping to teach me what really matters.
Well, I love you all! I have the best family and friends ever. :) Have a good week! I'll keep enjoying sunny, beautiful LA. I heard there's snow there. Is it really winter already?
Hermana Dansie
This week was amazing! We had some incredible miracles that came out of nowhere!
Our mission President issued a challenge to commit at least one more person to set a baptismal date in this next week, and right after our training we headed over to an appointment with a woman named Norma. The day before Sister Garza and Sister Williamson tracted into her while I was on splits in Echo Park with Sister Nef. Even though it had only been one day she had read the entire pamphlet about the Gospel of Jesus Christ. She told us that she especially liked the part on baptism, and that she really wants to be baptized so she can overcome her past sins, and even though she was baptized in the Catholic church, now that she's an adult she wants a baptism that is "stronger." She just said that she wants a little more knowledge, but she loves and believes everything she read. She believes that we are the answer to her prayers, because Sister Garza and Sister Williamson knocked literally right after she had prayed for guidance. The only problem is that she is only in town for a little bit visiting her niece, but she said that she has always been tempted to go to the Mormon church by her house in Mexico, but she just couldn't get anyone to go with her. She is so amazing! We are hoping she will find a way to stay here a little longer, but if not we are going to teach her and get her ready in the meantime, because she is so excited.
The next day we went over to meet with Leavin. We met him a while ago but have had a really hard time getting a hold of him because of his schedule with work and school. I saw him in the Visitor's Center last Sunday and talked to him about coming to church and meeting with us, and he was able to change things with his work so that he can come to church on Sundays from now on. When we went over for the lesson he told us about how he wants to change his life and get rid of all of his heavy metal music and black clothes and just start fresh. We asked him a lot of inspired questions (that's part of the new method- it involves truly listening and waiting to be prompted with questions from the spirit to find out their real concerns.) We taught him about baptism, and before we could even finish giving the commitment he said yes. His only concern is that he wants to be prepared to really commit and "live the rules." He also feels like we are the answer to his sincere prayers for guidance, and that he wants to have the peace and happiness that he can see that we have. He's been to the Visitor's Center a few times and says that he feels the people there are "mas puro y tranquilo," (more pure and calm) and he wants that in his life.
We feel blessed to be able to teach these amazing people! Heavenly Father has been really good to us.
For Halloween we didn't do anything too exciting. I dressed up as Sister Garza and she dressed up as me, aka, we just switched our tags. :D We went to church and the sacrament program was all about missionary work, so some missionaries gave the talks and we all sang a musical number "Nearer my God to Thee." All of the missionaries had to be in there apartments or in an activity with their zone by six, because it can be pretty dangerous to be out and about, especially with all of the drinking and crazy people in LA. Speaking of which, I went to splits in Down town LA! It was my first time down town and I'm sure I looked like a little podunk Utah girl walking around with all of these fashionable people. I don't think i could handle living in the City. Everything is man-made- even the nature. Its sad because the people just seem so empty. Money is not fulfilling and not worth it! What are these people really living for? A member took us out for dinner at a nice restaurant and everyone was drinking, and it was just really sad for me to think of them and their unfulfilled lives. I'm really glad that this mission is helping to teach me what really matters.
Well, I love you all! I have the best family and friends ever. :) Have a good week! I'll keep enjoying sunny, beautiful LA. I heard there's snow there. Is it really winter already?
Hermana Dansie
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