Monday, March 30, 2015

Week #63 The wedding!


Me and my balloon groom.

Angela was the cutest Bride!!

Wedding Day

Lima Central


March 30, 2015,
Hola Familia,
Wow this week was really fun and crazy.We had a lot of things going on! Wednesday I spent the day with hermana consultores working on family history. Thenon Friday we traveled to lima central to sign wedding papers, and that night we held a “white out” (baptism where everyone wears white). Saturday we had the wedding in the district offices, and Sunday we held a big family home. Honestly, it was such a busy week, I can’t believe how fast it went. We worked super hard, besides all the events mentioned above, we taught almost 40 lessons this week and made over 100 contacts. It was a very successfull week. Hermana Luna and I are SOO happy.
Something that I really had put into practice this week is a little concept I learned in my leadership class in high school called “flipping the switch”. As missionaries we do not have time to rest. We are ALWAYS working. This week with some huge things going on we really had to be on top of everything.Unfortunately I came down with a bad cold/flu. Literally every morning I woke up just wanting to stay curled up in my bed and do nothing because my body just felt awful. Every morning I had to find a way to “flip the switch” and get out of bed and carryout all of my work, even though it was hard and I was sick. I could have been a burden to my companion I could have comlained the whole day and done nothing but attitude is every thing. If we do things with a good attitude our perspective changes and we can lift those around us. The best part is that we can choose our atitude. We can choose to be sad and depressed or we can choose to be happy and positive. This Sunday was fast and testimony meeting. I bore my testimony about how the gospel of Christ makes us happy and that it can transform who we are. I think one of the biggest examples of some one who has changed from the gospel of Christ is my ward mission leader. He comes from a super tough background he basically doesnt have a family. He has struggled with a lot of things and the gospel has completly changed his life around; he is an inspiration to everyone who comes into contact with him. This week he completed one year as a member. It was areally exciting day! He was baptised last year and after his baptism he read the Book of Mormon in 5 days and his progression has just conintued on from there. He knows the scriptures better than most members... better than many misisionaries. He has baptised TONS of people and it is a miracle before my eyes to see how Jesus Christ can change the life of somelike Miguel. 
                         
The wedding this week was wonderful! We got everything ready and it was super smooth. Normally weddings have tons of complications but honestly the only hitch in this wedding, were the bride and groom getting married.. We Got up at 5:00am to help A get her hair and makeup and her dress ready.  She was the cutest little bride ever. We got to the district offices and took lots of pictures and then they were officially married. I am so happy for them.  
See you all in the summer!
Hermana Huish

Monday, March 16, 2015

Week #61 Transferred to Canto Rey


The week in pictures:


Right before transfers

 My palate is expanding on the mission. A few weeks ago I was served boiled chicken blood at a home and given crackers to dip in the blood. It wasn't easy, but I actually ate it. A mission is a little like survivor.


 Missionaries don't just teach the gospel, we do a lot of other things. For example, I have also become quite a wedding planner. A couple we are teaching is preparing to get married so this week I was trying to help the bride find a dress


Saying goodbye to some wonderful families in Santa Isabelle



Transfers







My new area is called Canto Rey. 



The night before transfers, I stayed up all night packing my suitcases and getting ready to go to my new area. When I got to the district offices I saw an old friend named Miguel Angel at the door. He used to come on appointments with me and Hrm. Pintado in Begonias. We Joked around saying that I would be assigned to his ward and guess what???? I am back in my home! I am back in San Juan de Lurigancho In Miguel Angels ward My new area is called Canto Rey. I couldn't believe It!  After it was announced everyone thought it was funny because I ran up to Miguel angel to tell him that I would be serving in his ward! It was the gift of prophecy! haha.

My first week here was super duper busy!!!! We are living in basically a little cave that is very small and HOT but I am sure I will get use to it. My new ward is tiny, only about 70 people but we have several great investigatores. This week we had the baptism of a 19 year old girl named K. We taught her early every morning this past week so that she would be prepared. We also have a couple V and A who we are teaching, they are sooo sweet.! A is like a little soft mouse and she has soo much faith. We inscribed them this week to be married and things are going great.
Another cool thing about this ward is that we teach a guitar class! I barley know how to play but it has been an awesome activity and I am getting better. But honestly the best part of this ward is Miguel Angel. He is our ward mission leader and he basically lives the life of a missionary. He is a recent convert and was baptized just last year but his testimony and conversion story is the BEST!  He knows more about the church then me and my companion put together. Every day this week he came with us on appointments and he really makes the work a lot of fun, which is the best part! We are always laughing and making jokes. Its awesome. I don't have much time left in the mission and I am  pretty sure this will be my last area so I hope to make it my BEST! 
Love  you all!
See you soon!
Hermana Huish

Monday, March 9, 2015

Week # 60 Fields of Flowers




 I baked "betty crocker" cupcakes with my friends in Santa Isabella this week. Anything from the US is a hit in Lima.





We worked at a sunflower field this week. You have to be happy when you are surrounded rows and rows of beautiful sunflowers, and you get to ride a tractor.




This week I answered a few questions about serving a mission. I hope this is helpful to anyone who is thinking of serving. 


1. Can you tell a difference when you are teaching with the spirit?
Of course there is a huge difference when we teach with the spirit. In D&C 42 it says “And the spirit shall be given unto you by the prayer of faith and if ye recieve not the Spirit ye shall not teach.” I testify of this spcripture. The spirit is absolutely the key to the conversion. If the investigatores dont feel the spirit there is in no way that they will accept our message. Missionaries can feel when they are teaching with the spirit and when they are not. It is so important to be able to channel the spirit into the lesson with questions and adapting the lesson to the needs of the invesigator. 

2. How many times a week are you rejected and how do you deal with it?
To give you a little bit of a clue of how many times we are rejected here is a picture of my agenda on a bad day. Circles mean they were set appointments, the X’s through the time means we were rejected, and the check means that we were accepted and we taught something. This is an example of an extreme day when nobody accepted us . Not all days are like this but it is true in the missionyou are rejected A LOT. If we are turned away right up front, i dont feel that bad. Normally we just laugh it off and keep going. However, when we have a recent convert, or less active, or an investigator that we have been teaching for a whie and they reject us it really hurts becuase these people have knowledge and basic understanding of the gospel principals. Even though it is really hard for missionaries to accept rejection we have to realize and remmeber that every person has their free agency. As missionaries if we taught with the spirit and did all that we possibly could and they still decide to reject the gospel we cant do anything more, and we have to move on. Rejection for me has been really hard but the longer I am out the better I have learned to deal with it. 

3. What were your biggest concerns as you began serving a mission?
Our personal concerns change throughout the mission. At the begining of my mission my biggest concerns were mainly about adapting to a new culture. Don’t get me worng I was really excited to be in a new country. But honestly I was really nervous to be somewhere where I didnt speak the langauge, and I had no knowledge of the customs. The first few months out were all about adapting to the Peruvian culture as well as the missionary life in general. No music, no tv,and all of the rules were a big adjustment.  After a few I adapted to the mission lifestyle and my concerns changed. I was no longer focused on myself but more concerned for the people that I was teaching.
 I can remember in the CCM discussing our fears.We went around a circle talking about our biggest concerns and one elder said that his biggest fear was having fears. This really made an impact on every one. God doesnt want us to be worried or fearful. Doubt and fear come from satan. We are here to do the Lords work and if we have fears we arent trusting that God will help us along this journey. In D&C 6. 33 it says “Fear not to do good, my sons for whatsoever ye sow, that shall ye also reap therefore, if ye sow good ye shall also reap good for your reward. Therefore, fear not, little flock, do good, let earth and hell combine against you for if ye are build upon my rock they cannot prevail.”  If anyone has fears before entering the mission field I invite them to get rid of their fears, put your confidence in God and trust that he will help you through whatever trial you encounter. You don’t ever need to be worried. That applies to life in general, not only for the mission field. Fear is something so natural but really it is a weakness that we need to overcome with faith in God. 

4. What talents and abilities do you have that have been helpful as you preach the gospel.
The biggest resource any missionary possess is a testimony. If your desires and testimony are in a good place you are set to serve a mission but if you are thinking about other things, if you desire to be doing soemthing else or if you dont have a strong testimony about a gospel principal people will notice. The other day we were teaching an investigator,  W. He had recieved lessons years before but never felt the testimony of the elders. When we taught the lesson of the restoration of the Gospel he was left speechless. He commented to us that he believed. In previous lessons he wasnt convinced but our convition and our testionies helped him understand the restoration of the gospel.  If you can, FIND YOUR TESTIMONY before you come out. That will be a big help!!


Tuesday, March 3, 2015

week #59 Fruits of the work





HELLLO! 
 I have been a little frustrated in my area recently because it was not yielding many "frutos" or results. I started to doubt myself as a missionary and the work it self. But, I have learned that I need to look at the big picture and focus on improving what is in my control. As I turn inward and evaluate my own deficiencies the path to perfection and improvement becomes clearer. God’s plan is for us to learn from our mistakes. So this week I took a big long look at my debilities and what personal issues I have that may be holding back our work. As funny as it seems, the attribute I kept coming back to was patience. The last several months I have been completely caught up in the time. In the mission we never have enough time to accomplish all that we need to do. I have been too concerned about getting through the lessons and teaching the doctrine of the scriptures that I forgot to listen to the doubts and needs of the investigatores. I was just “teaching” lessons instead of letting the spirit truly testify that what we are saying is true. This lack of patience is one reason our investegatores are not progressing.  Thank goodness for my companion, Hna Espinoza, she has been helping me to listen and teach according to the doubts and concerns of the investigatores. We can ask them questions about what they have learned and if they really feel and believe what they are teaching. It takes patience to stop a lesson and ask instead of just pushing through the material but in the end it is more effective.  As I have learned to take a step back and LISTEN miraculously, we have started to see more progress with our investigatores and our less actives. People have desires to come to church instead excuses. It was a really nice change to witness. So my message this week if you are dealing with a problem is to take a look at your own weaknesses and what you might be contributing to the issue. If we cant recognize our own weaknesses we are going to suffer from them forever. Self analysis and repentance, and change all equal forward progress.  Going through this process we will see a difference in our lives,  we will become humble, and we will come closer to Christ as we develop his attributes and characteristic. In the end we will be just plain happier!!

A very spiritual experience that we had this week was with a reference named K.  She is moving in to an apartment with a recent convert G. We served K  by helping her with all of her suitcases as she moved them to her apartment on the 5th floor.  She was very grateful. Just as we were going to share a message with her she realized that she lost her wallet. We all  ran back to the park was earlier in the day and her wallet was still there! In Lima, that is a miracle that no one took her wallet.  We helped K realize that this was a blessing from God. We explained to her that when we obey God he blesses us. In that moment the spirit testified to K that what we were saying was true and she started to cry. This past Sunday she came to church and I know that she will continue to progress and come closer to God. 

Another great experience that we had was with our investigatore W. He works in the police department and has a lot of knowledge of different religions. He has investigated everything from Jehovas whitness, to Muslim and from Mormons to the Catholics. But he explained that he hasn't been converted to any. When we came to his door and began teaching him, he started to believe. He works in crime investigation so has the ability to read people very easily. Thank goodness I believe everything that I am teaching him. I know he could tell if I didn't. I feel good that I know that the church is true that I am completely convinced that this is true.  I am also thankful for the testimony that I have so that I can share and help others obtain that same testimony.
I am definitely beginning to see a difference in our lessons and I am starting to feel the spirit more. I just had to take a step back, evaluate what was holding us back and then change so that our area could progress and we could have many "frutos".


Thanks for everything
Hermana Huish