Tuesday, December 17, 2013

I am still in Apoquindo with Hermana Maciel!!!!!

This has been a very exciting week that ended up being less intense than we thought it was going to be.  Hermana Maciel and I are together again!!!  I know it is crazy!  We were both prepared to be transferred, but we are both happy and I am just really excited to have six more weeks with my favorite companion, and celebrate Navidad with someone I am already really comfortable with.

This week was really similar to all of the other weeks with a lot of ups and downs.  First down: sweet V____.   AHHHHHHHH!!!!!  I refuse to have children  -- it hurts too much!!  Oh my word, I hate that she feels like she has lost her faith.  And what makes it worse is she is not really trying to find it again.  She does not really want to and so she is not going to find it.  She told us that she is content where she is.  I don´t think it is because she is lazy, I think it might just be that she is afraid to find out that it IS true.  I find it is worth the risk.  We are going to keep working with her and her family, who are still doing great, but I think are pretty tired.  It is good that the girls are in vacations now hopefully the family can have some time to rest together. 

We had zone conference this week.  It was intense.  President gave this really beautiful talk about the Savior.  We talked in detail about the Atonement, and how we should use it to teach our investigators. We tried to talk about it a lot more often this week and it worked well.  It is pretty spectacular that we have access to that Atonement that is infinite!  It does not matter what we have done, what sin we have committed, what challenge we are going through, what temptations easily overcomes us, what weakness constantly haunts us, or what trial we are facing WE KNOW IN WHOM WE HAVE TRUSTED!!!  He has the power!  No one is excluded in that group! Sometimes it feels too good to be true, and so I freak out a little but turns out His Atonement can cover my freaking-out-ness too!!!

So, Y_____ is doing really well!  She is such a sweetheart.  I love her so much!  She is doing really well spiritually, but not too well financially.  She lost a good job which cost her her savings and now has taken a job doing something with parking and is now working EVERY DAY for 18 hours!!!  The only day she has "off" are Sundays when she only has to work 9 hours.  She is working more than us!!!  We only work like 16 hours a day and our day off we only have to work 5!  You know your schedule is RIDICULOUS when you are working more than the missionaries! And, we get a lot of support.  We get letters from home, lunch with members, and of course the most important is a lot of strength from God Himself! ... because we are doing His work.  Pray for her please!   We challenged her to get baptized and she accepted very happily!  We are really excited for her!  She begs us for homework even though she does not have time to read and she reads every time!  I love her!  We don´t get to see her very much but when we do it is a delight!  I don´t know when she is going to get baptized (she can´t go to church so we are kind of stuck) but she is awesome. 

We continue to have really beautiful lessons with M C____.  I can´t believe she still has not gone to church!  She is so sweet!  She has a heart of gold!  It is so hard for her to find the faith that she feels like she has lost.  I don´t think she has lost it; I think she just has to find it in herself again.  She is the one who lost her son and her husband cheated on her and left her all in the same year.  I love her so much!  She told us that she was able to just straight up forgive her ex-husband.  She taught me a lot about how we should just love people .... that being mad at someone is actually so much harder than just loving them. 

We also challenged Manuel to get baptized and he accepted!  His only real problem is he believes truth is just what you feel is right.  He is half right but he does not trust the scriptures.  I feel like the Tree of Life vision is right on because I feel like I am on the path using the scriptures and words of the prophets to feel God´s love.  He can see that I am happy, and it is like he is in the field, calling to me: 'How do you have such a firm path to the tree?'  I keep repeating over and over ... I am using this bar of iron (the scriptures) and he keeps saying ... 'that is not it!' 'what are you doing?'   He told us he knows this church must have something good with how many signs he has experienced in his life but he just wants more time to learn. 

So, now for my sermon on Love :-) .... Sorry I did not realize it was always about love, but dad is right ... I love loving people so much!  I really think that was the joy God was talking about when He told us we can have a deeper joy.  When we love, look for, and enjoy the good; it makes it so I don´t have to feel angry, I don´t have to wonder if God is real.  I just get to feel love all of the time!  I am so obviously not perfect at this but I love learning about it.  This week is about hope and love.  There is a scripture in Romans 5:3-5 that says that we are grateful for trials, because they bring patience, and we are grateful for patience, because it brings experience, and we are grateful for experience because it brings hope (like the article you sent me mom!) and "hope maketh us not ashamed because the love of God shedeth itself abroad on the children of men."  I love that!  I can have confidence in my hope because I cannot deny his love!  I know it is real, so I can go out every day UNASHAMED to share His gospel, because I feel His love.  What a beautiful idea!  God lives and loves us!  I know it!  I hope you all have a great week and I can´t wait to talk to you all super soon!
Anyway, I love you all!  
Love, Hermana Webb
Misión Chile Santiago Este
Cristobal Colón 6824
Las Condes, Casilla 27.144
Santiago, Región Metropolitana
Chile



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