October 7. 2013

Thanks for everyones Happy birthday messages! i loved reading them and really appreciate each and ever one of them. I ran out of time here to write a good big email but i wanted to share something that i liked from conference, One of the themes i received from conference was "endurance". One of the speakers (I think it was Richard J, Maynes) said "succesful endurance" and that brought up the question in my head, is there an unsuccesful endurance? and yes there is. Enduring isnt just making it through the trial but growing from the trial. that is why enduring to the end isnt just making it to the celestial kingdom but growing and becoming the person that belongs in the celestial kindgom. We dont just need to endure till the end of our missions but endure successfully and become the type of missionary (or person) that christ knows we can be through every trial we go through. I am so grateful for the opportunity we have to be here in Spain serving the Lord. I want to grow, and i want to learn from every day here. I want to "SUCCESSFULLY endure" and not just endure. I love you all so much and appreciate all your prayers and emails! take care !! and read the scriptures! 

love, Hermana Hair

Lleida Zone Conference -- Great Role Plays!

September 30, 2013

Buenos Dias everyone! I have news that I have been forgetting to tell you all for probably over a month now... Our first counselor here in our ward is going to name his baby after me!!! haha. Grand news right? ;) When I first arrived here in Lleida we ate lunch with him and his wife and she was pregnant but not even showing yet. And they asked us our names and we told them and then that was it. and then like a month ago they broke the news to me that they wanted to use my first name for their baby! I was so very happy as you can imagine, I might not have a baptism yet here but I do have a baby named after me ;) haha. Still a birth but not of water... Im getting closer though:) They are both a very young couple and this will be their first child. She will be born in November so pretty soon! I might still be here to meet baby Melanie. 

So today I was reading in Mosiah about Abinidi, He was such a strong and diligent missionary. It really gave me hope and inspired me to keep going with all ive got. Abinidi gave his life , but only until he fullfilled his mission, until he did everything he was called to do. And even after his great effort and sacrifice he died knowing that the king wouldnt change, not even knowing if he made a differnce to anyone, but he died satisfied because he did his part. Little did he know, that Alma was there and through Alma many many people are touched and changed. It helped me realize that sometimes we dont see the big impact we really are having in people. How someone could be watching our every move, our every word , without us noticing. And that we really are going to make a difference , even if we dont see it, It is promised that it will happen. Just as long as we keep doing our part , our full 100% until our mission is over, the rest is taken care by the Lord. He was a missionary but also just a person, just like all of us (ones with the missionary name tag and those without it) everyone is seeing, hearing and noticing our example. 

We are teaching Juan Angel, a 38 year old man from Lleida. He loves mormons, he wants to be one but he does not want to accept tithing. We have been trying to have daily contact with him and help him gain a testimony of the BOM and JS and trying to get him to pray and realize the importance of tithing. So that is who we have been focusing on this week. He has been in the Hospital because his appendix errupted a couple weeks ago so he hasnt been able to come to church but we are hoping to get him there for General Conference this weekend. I am so excited for General Conference this weekend!! The times here for it are super weird though. We watch the Saturday morning Session live but at 6 pm here. and We watch Saturday afternoon session , Sunday at 2. And Sunday morning session at 6 pm here. - because of the time difference things are very different but I am still looking forward to it! 

Love you all so much!! Love, Hermana Hair 

Miledy and Oscar moved to the Elders area so we are going to pass them off to them this week. I trust the Elders and know that they will be in good hands.

Ummmmm..... yep this is our District. The elders were all trying to be asian like Elder Schwartz. Quite a group eh?

In a small Pueblo going to meet up with some members for a FHE. Love this road and it made me feel like I was in Utah somewhere.

September 23, 2013

Hello Hello! 

Querido Presidente Pace, 

This week is zone conference and I am looking very much forward to it! I love zone conference. Its like the one time we as missionaries get spiritually recharged. We always give and give and by the end of the day sometimes it feels like we are spiritually drained but conferences always recharge you and you walk out with more spirituality and excitement than when you even first started your mission :)

So this past week has been better, we have been continually getting more and more busy. I feel like we have a few of very good investigators with potential but yet their progression is slow. I know that there part is something we can not control but we will keep doing our best and bringing the spirit to every lesson and letting him be the teacher . We have a couple, Miledi and Oscar who we have taught the restoration to and they want us to keep coming but they said that the whole story is not convincing for them that they have talked it over with other people as well and that they think it was gutsy and out of place for Joseph smith to say that all the churches were wrong. basically they said they arent convinced. we emphasized the importance of reading the book of mormon because it really is the key. If they can gain a testimony of its truthfullness then they will know Joseph smith is a prophet of God and that his gopel really has been restored. They said they would read and pray. because they said they have been praying but havent gotten a response yet but they havent really been reading. so we encouraged them to continue with reading and praying and promised them that they would receive a response. I pray that they will have a spiritual experience and as we continue to teach i have faith they will feel the spirit and it will testify to them in their heart of the things we teach. 

Hermana Williams is still doing great, her spanish seems to be coming along pretty well. We need to do better at speaking more spanish between us two, i think that will really help her and me. Everyone here says that fall is beginning and all the stores now have their big chunky winter jackets and boots out. I am actually looking very forward to winter. I feel like I have half a suitcase of untouched sweaters and scarfs. Its going to feel like a whole new wardrobe.! Its crazy to think that winter is approaching though, that means christmas. I love christmas time and its the best time of the year to be celebrating every day of the christmas season by teaching and talking about Christ. Time has flown by! Come November, I will only have one year left on the mission! Crazy. 

Well I am so happy to always be hearing about all of your lives and experiences. Keep busy and always keep stregntheing your testimonies.

Mosiah 2:41 - love sharing this with members so thought i would share it with all of you. 

Keep smiling and keep going! Love you all so much!

much love from lleida! 

Hermana Hair

September 17, 2013‏

Hello everyone! 

This week has been a lot better than last week for me. I have been loving being with Hermana Williams she really has opened up and came out of her shell a bit more and I love her optimism and faith. She is never hesitant when it is her turn to initiate a contact or when I give her time to speak. She listens and takes advice very well and is always so happy to help me in my personal goals as well as our companionship goals. An investigator that we visited last week and this week is Miledy and she commented on how much better Hermana Williams pronounciation is in just one week! She does seem to be bit shy still with her spanish but I am encouraging her to speak up . I gave her the challange of asking every person we talk to (member, investigator, contact) at least one question, any question, when we are just chatting with people. That way people will know she is understanding the conversation and will include her more and start talking to her as well instead of just me. 

So I feel like our pool of investigators kinda went downhill a few weeks ago so trying to get that back up and going has been tough. In our ward we have a new RM, his name is Israel and he became the new ward mission leader. He still has the missionary work fire and is very determined to "fill our agendas" and help us as much as possible. I am excited for this change. Hopefully, it can be just the thing that Lleida's ward needs to dive into the obra misional (missionary work). I never really understood the importance of the members help in the missionary work before my mission. The members ARE the missionaries. I often wonder to myself what I was doing before my mission and why i wasnt helping more in the missionary work. I guess its different in Utah but still, that is not an excuse, it really is every members responsibility :) help the missionaries!! they would really appreciate it.. I would know. . haha. 

Well since I am training I am expecting to be here till the beginning of December. Because the training program is for two transferes (12 weeks). But with president Pace, no one ever knows what he is going to do , so Hermana Williams and I might be split up mid training in ocotber but I highly doubt that. Wherever the Lord needs me is where I will be. 

I love you all so so so so so much! Keep strong and firm in the Gospel! 

love, Hermana Hair

fotos

Pictures from a member from the ward who invited us all over to eat last week before Hermana Blanco left.

September 9, 2013

So this week has been full of ups and downs. I was sad to leave Hermana Blanco, it really was a bitter sweet goodbye. I hadnt realized how much we had grown together and how good of friends we had become and how hard our seperation was actually going to hit me. But my new compañera is HERMANA WILLIAMS. She is from Tampa, Florida, she is 19 and so ready to work. She likes to dance and swim and has a strong testimony. She is working on her spanish but speaks and understands a lot more than I thought she would. Which is great!  She is a bit more quiet but hopefully with time we can become great friends as well. 

This past week I have been praying and going to the Lord in fervent prayer to help me accomplish all my goals that I have for this transfer. I received a very clear answer this past week one night during my prayer. It was a thought that came into my head right after asking for guidance and help, the words were, "okay, (as if it was a confirmation of everything I was asking for) now go and do it" I know that the Lord is willing and ready to help us in anything we ask him. I also know that we just have to go out and do it. We are the medium which miracles come to happen. I cant wait for a miracle to happen I have to be out there and giving it my all and be in a position that invites miracles to come about. I have been growing every single day of my mission. there has not been a day that has gone by that i can say that i have not learned something new or increased my knowledge on something. 

One of my goals is to work with the members a lot more that is something hermana Blanco and I started to try doing but hadnt really figured out the best way to do . PMG says that member references are the best ones and we havent really gotten any here in lleida but that is something i want to work on. Part member families and menos activos is right up there on my list too. I want to fortify the ward so that when we bring in new members the ward will be a strong foundation they can stand on. Finding news is something we do daily and I have been seeing many miracles in contacting. If we ask for people who are ready to listen to the gospel then the Lord will do just that AFTER we go out there and do our part. 

I love you all and I attached a couple of pictures. The black and white one is of Herm Williams and I in the locotorio. Its in black and white because today was a hurry and rush getting ready day ha. but the other picture is when we were dropping our mini missionaries off last week at the train station. The elders came to help with their luggage. 

Have a wonderful week! 

love,

Hermana Hair