October 27, 2014

Buenos dias! Thanks so much for the birthday wishes and the package :) It was perfect! We had a lot of fun! I'll attach some pictures :) Hna. Carlson was trying to do a big surprise for me, but since you guys sent a cake, I was going to make it, and then she confessed that she already had the Elders buy one for me and they were going to bring it over while I was in the shower, so instead we pulled a little prank on the Elders and I opened the door when they brought it over. So funny! We recorded it, so I guess I'll show it to you in like 8 months haha but it was super funny. We had a little party during lunch and then the rest of the day we had lessons that all went really well :) Right? It's crazy how fast time flies. I can't believe it. I feel like I'm the one that's 17, not Connor! 

This week was pretty good! Our investigators are all kind of in the same boat. No one is super duper solid, but they all have desires to do learn. So we're working with those desires to get them to grow! Esmerelda is still coming to church, and we were shocked yesterday when her sister Nancy came too! So we're excited to see how that all happened! Pray that Esmerelda still wants to wait to be baptized til she's older. So pray that she has a change of heart with that! 

WE FOUND VERONICA! She's been MIA for a week! Turns out all this crazy stuff has been happening, that now she's moving and changing her phone number and everything. I won't go into details, but we may have protected her when we showed up at her house the other night! So keep her in your prayers too! She's so awesome and really wants to get baptized, Satan is just trying SOO hard right now. 

We also are having and interesting little situation! So a Sister in the english ward is having her mom and her aunt visiting from Venezuela, and wanted her aunt to be taught again. Her name is Carmen and she was taught 30 years ago, and was about to be baptized, but because a missionary was disobedient it completely turned her off! So we've been working with her this week, and she's really cool! But the weird thing is that she's going to Texas in a week, then moving back to Venezuela after that. So we're getting the process starting and somehow she's going to be taught in Texas and Venezuela. I wish she was her longer so we could keep working with her, but she's really opened up and I'm sure one day she will be baptized :) I'll have to keep in touch with them to find out ;) 

We've also been working a lot with less-actives, and 3 of them came to church! I feel like a lot of the times missionaries don't pay much attention to less-actives since they don't count as numbers or baptisms, but it's really the exact same thing teaching them, and rekindling that fire that was once there! It's part of our purpose to help others to endure to the end. So I've grown a bigger testimony this week on working with people that you don't really get to see the fruits of your labors (Carmen and less-actives) Which made me also think of how I can do missionary work when I get home since obviously it's mostly members in Utah it's harder to do the baptizing of missionary work, but less-active work is just as important! When it talks about bringing souls to Christ, it doesn't say just through baptism, but helping people return and herding in the lost sheep. So I challenge you and everyone to do some more less-active work as missionary work and strengthening the people around you :) When I get home I'm going to print off a less-active sheet and start visiting all of them to keep fulfilling my missionary responsibilities :) I love this gospel and I love sharing it with others! Hope you have a great week :) Sure do love you! 

Con mucho amor, 

Hermana Nelson 

Birthday Decorations

The Birthday Girl

Kylee's Cake!