Week # 71 Importance of Families

Hola,

This week I want to write alittle bit about one of our investigators. S is 21 years old. She is a single mother with a little baby girl. She has been through a lot of tough things and has made some poor decisions in her life. When we were first getting to know her, we never would have guessed that she would prgress so quickly. In the beginning she told us that she was happy with her party life and wasn’t really interested in a major change. God humbled her very quickly.  She made some bad choices one night and almost lost custody of her baby as a result. We had a long discusion about the decisions she was making, the life she was living and the changes that she needed to make. She broke down into tears as she realized where her life was headed. I know that God sent us at the perfect moment. We talked to S about God’s commandments. We explained to her that sometimes we are weak and want to do what we want, but that there are consequences. If we do what God wants we will live happier, more successful lives. The thought piqued her interest and she came to church with us this week as well as a couple activities in the ward. She was sooo happy. We helped her set some new goals to obey the commandments, go to church and to put her daughter first. As I have pondered her situation this week I have become aware of the importance of our families and what joy they can bring to us. I am so thankful for my family. I know that I have been very blessed to be brought up in truth and light. With parents who put God always first. And who have led me on a righteous path. I know that anyone who that lives the gospel can also acheive this type of success but we have to be committed to living the commandments, and to prayer. These are the things that help us through. I know that the gospel blesses families. I know that we recieve blessings as we live the commandments of God. I also know that when we live the commandments we can avoid many bad situations. If we don falter, I know that Jesus Christ came to earth to make repentance an option for us and  that we can ALWAYS ask for forginveness and most importantly we can ALWAYS change. We can chage the situations that we are in for the better. And even though it takes alittle bit of effort on our part it is worth it in the end.

Love you all,

Hermana Huish

Week #68 The refiners fire

Hola!!

This week was amazing. After a long time in the refiner’s fire, I feel like I have personally changed. This video does a great job of illustrating this analogy of the refiners fire.

Watch it if you can, but I will try to explain  In order to bend the metal he wants to shape, the refiner has to heat it in a flaming fire, then he bangs the metal with tools and hits it repeatedly until it forms into the shape that he wants. This is exactly what God does with us. He puts us through fire, he bangs us, and twists us until we are who he wants us to become, until we take the shape that he wants us to be. Enduring the fire and the shaping is difficult, we have to be willing to submit to the will of God but in the end it is all worth it when we become stronger, more compassionate and closer to God.

I love working with the Hermana Lopez, my new companion because she is amazing! Even though she is new in the field, she has so many desires to work. Sometimes I feel that I am learning more from her even though I am the trainer. This week we had a work visit with the sister trainers and honestly it was kind of boring. The sister leaders tract people down in the street and are robotic in their teaching style. Part of being a missionary is that you have to be able to relate to people, to understand their needs and read them. If you just go up and start talking about prophets and Joseph Smith most people shut down or it goes right over their head. But With hermana Lopez I don't feel that way. Teaching with her is the best because she relates to people and cares about their needs. A really special moment this week was with the family L. M had a husband who died and now shes is living with a new boyfriend but they are not married. Many privileges have been taken away from her in the church and she broke down the other day when we went to visit her. She started crying and asked us to help her repent and to be able to enter the temple again. It was a really spiritual experience because she recognized the need for repentance. She wants to change her life for the  better. We made a plan and now we are working on her wedding. Wahoo! 

Love you all and see you in the summer,

Hermana Huish