May 26, 2014

Querida Familia y Amigos,

Umm monday again?? time flies too fast :(

The best thing this week was that MELISA GOT BAPTIZED!!

So on Tuesday we had specialized training with the barcelona and badalona zones. President Pace and Hna Pace give us a specialized training every 3 months . they ask us to come prepared with prayfully picked questions that we want answered at the conference. So obviously hna nalbandyan and I both have our question that concern Melisa and Elizabeth... crazy thing is that the conference was all about feeling the holy ghost and praying.. exactly what melisa and elizabeth need. they are waiting on their answers and wow , it was as if this conference was made just for us to be able to teach them. 

So something we started doing was teaching elizabeth and melisa seperatly because they both have different needs and they seem to like the special attention more. so its all good. So later on tuesday we had a cita with melisa and we focused on how she was praying , what she was asking and how the holy ghost works and how to recognize it. So we sent her off with the invitation to pray specifically and to listen. Then all we could do was trust that god was going to answer her in his due time. our next cita we had with Melisa this week we had to sadly cancel (supposed to be on thursday), because hna nalbandyan was sick and we had to cancel our intercambio where I was going to go to hospitalet and another hna was going to come to barc for a day. we were bummed about the situation and stayed in piso that day. the next day hna nalbandyan was feeling much better so we set up our visits and met with melisa. During this visit, we wanted to go back to lesson one and talk about joseph smith, his prayer and answer after watching the restoration dvd. at the end of the lesson we asked her if she believed in god, if she believed in christ and if she believed the book of mormon was true. Yes, she replied after each question. okay... so we read mosiah 18:8-10 . she started to laugh because of the direct question that she knew was directed to her... we said, melisa.. do you want to be baptized?.. YES, she said. MILAGRO!???!!!! we kept our level of excitedness to a normal amount.. She explained that she had received her answer, that before she was praying but that she wasnt asking for anything specific, she did not like the job she had so she decided to ask god for a new job (umm very specific). and on wed she got offered a job!! she said that at first she thought it was a coincidence but that in her head came the thought, "this is the answer i was looking for, this is what i asked god"... we told her that that thought that came into her head was the holy ghost... she smiled.  I know that God at that moment was smiling too.

Melisa is so very special, she is a daughter of God AND now she knows it! because when we started teaching her a month ago she was atheist... what a huge change. only God can make this change in people, not me, not hna nalbandyan.. only God. I love this work. it bring me such joy and peace to see how it helps everyone and how people can change.  

I have a very very strong testimony that everything happens for a reason, that we need not fear when things dont go as planned because if we trust in god and let the holy ghost guide us then everything is happening how God wants it to happen

I know god wanted them to prepare for the 17th so that they would have doubts so that afterwards when they come out of the doubts they can be baptized saying I KNOW this is true. I know that God wanted me to be there for this cita and that is why hna nalbandyan got sick and I couldnt go to hospitalet (a city near barcelona )because i would not have been present at this cita when she told us she wanted to be baptized. how sad would that be?.. either way i would have been extatic about her decision :) but im glad I was there for the visit. and I know that the specialized training was inspired and that we were blessed because we went out and acted on our leader's guidance. I know that God answered her prayer because she was diligent, had faith and was going to act on his answer... thats exactly what she did, she recieved and then acted. she told us on friday she wanted to be baptized, and the next day at 7 pm was... She is so happy , you can see it on her face. I love her! 

and I love you all! Have a great week!

love,

Hna Hair 

May 19, 2014

Short Email this week. 

So this week for the first time in my whole mission I was sick.. It was like the same thing that I had in the MTC exactly one year ago. Started out with alergies that turned into a sore throat with a headache and feeling super weak which is now winding out with a cough and stuffy nose.But I am okay. I'm getting better and there were a couple mornings where we stayed in and rested and then went out and worked the afternoon. Funny thing though is that my companion and I are so united that once I got sick... She did too.. haha.

Quick updates.

1.Melisa and Elizabeth did not get baptized this week, They want to but they say they havent received their answer from God yet. But they are still doing their part, reading the book of mormon, praying and coming to church. they have even brought friends to church who they want us to teach too! incredible! Dont worry though, I know God has a plan for them and that all of this is part of his plan . I was rereading the book of mormon and when i was reading about sariah murmering because her sons hadnt come back from getting the brass plates but that after they returned and she had suffered (I assume as any mother would) she could testify with a SURETY that her husband was a prophet and that the lord had protected them. and THAT is what i think God wants for melisa and elizabeth he wants them to go through a bit of hard times in their conversion so that afterwards they can say that they know with SURETY that this church is true... at least thats one thing i think God is doing. :)

2. This past sunday - so yesterday- in our ward we could have easily made up a whole branch of just americans! idk why but everyone decided to visit barcelona this weekend and come to church! ha. most of who.. were from utah. there were 6 byu graduates who were backpacking through europe. and of course the mormon world is so tiny that I knew one of them and he informed me of all my friends that are now married.. its crazy to see everyone getting married. but im happy for all of them:)

3. I cant believe that of all the months I have forgotten to take my one year picture but I will send it next month. 

I hope you are all having a healthy and fun week! 

Love, Hermana Hair

Actually these two pictures can be my one year picture. Both of these were on May 1st when H. Nalbandyan and I decided to celebrate it and get McFlurries from Mcdonalds and eat it infront of the sagrada familia and then the other picture is of the three of us, hna rackham, elder alder and I who all had our one year mark on may first! Crazy

May 13, 2014

Mi querida Familia y Amigos!

Oh how the lord just blesses his missionaries with SO many miracles. This is a mission of miracles, its a mission that teaches repentance and baptizes worthy converts. 

So remember Melisa and her aunt, Elizabeth? Well they are progressing incredibly! I have to tell you the biggest miracle that happened this past week. So we had our third visit with melisa y elizabeth and for some reason in the first two lessons we didnt invite for baptism. H. Nalbandyan and I always talked about it after the citas and both felt that it just didnt feel right. (which I know is completely against everything we are taught- were supposed to invite in the first lesson) at the time though melisa was not creyente (atheist) and elizabeth had not had good past experiences with other churches so we never felt the spirit prompting us to invite for baptism. . . Well during this third visit, we were teaching lesson 2- plan of salvacion. Elizabeth asks about baptism and we explain it , they listen and seem to agree and then we continue . at the end of the lesson I asked them that if they pray and recieve an answer that yes this is the true church if they will follow the example of Jesus Christ and be baptized. They both thought about the question and answered yes. Then I turned to H. Nalbandyan so that she could invite them for the specific date. She started to testify very powerfully about everything and how they were being prepared specifically by God for this message. The spirit was so strong... but she wasnt inviting them for the fecha... hmmm I thought. Well I will say the date then. . (so this past week we have been inviting people for the 24th) I was thinking in my head that i was going to invite for the 24th but for some reason I was not at peace with that thought... well maybe they need more time I thought, So i decided on inviting them for the 31st but once again it did not feel right... What date should I give them ? I asked myself (and God) the date 17th came to my head. the 17th???? at that moment when i thought of that date I felt the strongest burning sensation growing from the middle of my heart outwards. - the 17th was in 10 days, so this saturday- ummm... really? its funny how imperfect we are because i found myself doubting the revelation I had just recieved from God. I really have never felt the spirit so strongly testifying as to when I should invite someone to be baptized. Yet I second guessed myself. When it was my turn to talk, H. Nalbandyan looked at me, I had still not decided what date I was going to say. I gave a short testimony testifying about the truthfullness of what my compaion had just said and then I invited them to be baptized for the 17th of May....... I was still surprised when I heard that number come out of my mouth. My attention was directly on them looking for how they were going to react, expecting to see shocked eyes or some sort of surprised or negative body language coming from them. To my surprise they just sat there with the same expression they had on thier faces as they were listening to H. Nalbandyans powerful testimony. Melisa started to shake her head up and down and said yes. I looked at Elizabeth she thought about it and said, "I have a lot more to still learn, but i suppose that by the 17th I will have already learned alot" after making sure her answer was yes, haha we testified with all our heart about their decision.

 It is incredible , absolutely incredible how when we invite the spirit in the lessons, listen and then act on his promptings, how everything turns out exactly how the Lord wants it to be. The Lord uses us as his mouth and arms, if we let him. Talking with H. Nalbandyan afterwards, we realized how perfectly God planned everything. She was absolutely shocked when i invited them for the 17th because she said that she was going to invite for the 31st but for some reason started to testify and completely forgot about inviting them. . she said she knew god made her forget to ask because she wasnt going to invite them for the 17th and instead used me so that I could give them the date He wanted for them. She listened to the spirit by testifying when she was prompted to. I know that when both companions are worthy and willing to listen to the spirit that that is when we are able to teach with with power and authority of God, that is when we see miracles. I love my companion so much. I love Melisa and Elizabeth so much. I especially love the Holy Ghost and the guidance we recieve from him.

 Melisa and Elizabeth are still preparing to be baptized this coming saturday. They have came to church since the first day we contacted them and they are repenting and feeling the peace that comes from following Gods true path. I know this because they have told us plainly that they have more peace in their lives and that they see how different life is when we learn and follow Christs Gospel. 

 H. Nalbandyan and I have started to really realize after lessons how in tune with the spirit we are when we just work off eachother and teach and testify as if we were one person. one in purpose and one with God. 

My invitation to you all is to always be worthy of the spirit, of his promptings and to trust in God and act on His answers. I know that this is how we are blessed and how we are able to bless others. 

Oh one more thing! i am writing on tuesday because this week was transferes! I am staying in Barcelona!!! with my same compañera :) so all is good. 

Oh and a couple things I think I have forgoten to mention. 

1. I live by Gaudis famous cathedral, The sagrada Familia.. - can't remember if ive mentioned this or not. 

2. remember my mini missionary who i had in lleida for a week and a half? the one with the longer dark hair. Well Im in her ward now! so i see her all the time and it takes me back to lleida haha. 

3. and i know i talked about it the whole time but melisa and elizabeth are getting baptized this saturday! we hope :) 

4. and i love you all!

love, Hermana Hair

May 5, 2014

Bon Dia, (Im in catalunya again, yay for catalan)

I have never felt so grateful as I have been feeling recently.  I cant help but in my prayers really reflect on everything I have and how blessed I am to be here in this mission, to know the wonderful people I know and to be doing this wonderful work. I think now that I have hit my one year mark I really am starting to see the end, and its not a pretty sight. I wish I could look back and still have a year left. . ha. lucky elders and their two year missions haha ;) but really,l i think i have not thanked the lord enough for this opportunity I am having! its incredible, its the best dream ive been in and i dont ever want to wake up. I love the lord so much and ive never felt so close to him in my whole life. Its amazing how in the world we are, the stories we hear, the people we help... yet how out of the world we really are spiritually, its amazing.

 

We see miracles literally everyday. Melisa was a street contact who has come to church twice now! comes to all the activities and is getting along so well with the JAS, she gave her first prayer ever at the end of our visit, it was a kneeling prayer and she said it with such a sincere heart that the spirit was felt so strongly. She started to cry after her prayer. I about cried to. it was a beautiful simple prayer but with so much truth and humility. She specifically asked that we could help many other people come to know the truth of this gospel and that they would accept the message. She is wonderful! i love seeing her progression. 

Well that was one little miracle of a whole week full of miracles! I hope you are all doing better and well and happy. Thank the lord for all we have because we sometimes take things for granted, i know. We have so much to be thankful for. so so so much. 

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY TO ALL MOMS OUT THERE!!! I hope everyone makes that day super special for you all. Love you mucho!!

love, Hermana Hair