Hola!! Como Estan!
I just have to say, I'm overflowing with joy and just so so grateful this week. I'll tell you why:) The Lord has answered my prayers, I've been super blessed. This week I am most grateful for my companions, last week I didn't think I would ever be able to say that! Ha, okay, most grateful for my companions and my District, this is mi familia de la CCM. I really do have love for each and every one of these Elders and Sisters. Okay, so let me expound a bit. We had a few kinks in our companionship, mostly personality clashes and so we kind of had more of a heated discussion one night in place of a proper companionship inventory, I mean, heated in the MTC.. Not what I would call heated at home, there wasn't any yelling or name calling or anything, it was just sort of opening up about some frustrations. And it was important, you really can't bottle up those kind of emotions and teach as a team with the Spirit. We learned that on Saturday.. However, Sunday morning sitting in Branch Council, the theme of the meeting felt rang "Companionship Inventory, comp inventory, comp inventory, regular and thorough" President Hansen promised that if we could master this it would bless us throughout eternity because 50% of marriages are failing today.. Sad stat, sorry. But this really impressed me, I mean we had held a couple comp inventories, but we needed another one! So that same day, right before Sacrament we came together, in the hall, awkward our Elders kept interrupting. And we came to realize that there were a few more unresolved issues and as we prayed and talked through them and received a better understanding of one another we grew and I felt so much joy. This stuff isn't easy but So important. Awww, and then we had the glorious opportunity to go and partake to the Sacrament, and I just felt like, "Yes! A fresh start!!" I felt so clean and so ready to try again, Yay for the Sacrament and the opportunity to renew our desires and be clean of our shortcomings and sin.
Thee other hugest way the Lord has answered my prayers.. Just yesterday, oh my word! Okay, so I've mentioned before the difficulty of speaking Spanish in our District because some missionaries don't see the importance of it or we just forget you know? Ha, you would think I was schizophrenic or something becuase I'd be constantly muttering Spanish under my breath, translating what someone just said in Ingles or what I would say back in Spanish if anybody would listen to me!! Ha, I've just been so stressed and praying so hard to learn how I can improve my Spanish, because I felt like I was doing everything I knew how. And then, our ever so inspired teacher comes in last night for class and was like, "Elders and Sisters, how's the HSI (Speak your Language) coming?" Because he had already given us the pep talk about how this is the only way to learn Spanish and leave the MTC as prepared as possible... Ha, well it was clear that we needed work. So we had this discussion as a class, "What are you willing to sacrifice for the Lord." He likened this situation unto Ammon when he first crossed Lamoni's father and had him at knife point and lamoni's father's like, "Ah! I'll give you half of my kingdom if you don't kill me!" And then later when Ammon teaches him about the Gospel, "[Ammon I'll give you my entire kingdom if you teach me how to be saved]" And finally as it really settles in, "I will give away all my sins to know God," says Lamoni's father. Brother Perez was like, what are you guys going to give? As you come to understand the importance of this sacrifice that the Lord has asked of you, what can you give up? Social time, pride, fear, inconvenience, selfishnes.. These were some of the things we came up with. And in my head, the whole lesson my heart was just swelling because I was thanking the Lord, this is exactly what I need, I want teammates to learn Spanish with, and I needed a strengthened resolution to speak Spanish TODA DIA CADA DIA (All day, everyday). Ha so our District has all commmitted to HSI all the time and I am the most grateful person I know right now.
Just thought I'd say, we had our first TRC experience, we meet Saturday mornings at 8:30, cuz Mom I know you said the Kapendas wanted to come (that makes me super nervous ha but esta bien!). And we actually ended up teaching our instructor, HErmana Larson because there weren't enough volunteers and afterward we taught some amazing Peruvians, who are the fruits of missionary work themselves.. Well, truthfully we all are. Anyways, we so loved this experience, it was a lot of unplanned and follow the Spirit kind of instruction, it was actually really neat teaching Hermana Larson because we got the chance to really ask her some deeper questions and feel more of her Spirit, see a side we don't always get to in class. We also had some incredible lessons this week with our investigators, mario and Stephanie. We've been really trying to focus on teaching people and not lessons and especially after we decided to come together as a companionship, you could tell such a difference in our lessons, we brought the Spirit with us, followed it and felt so much more of a connection with our Investigators. Ha, but it's not all perfect, even just yesterday we kind of flopped with Stephanie, mostly because we had to teach her in the hallway and we couldn't hear each other a lot of the time because people were in and out, ha but it was still sort of a tough lesson. i guess that's a good situation to practice, because in street contacting, which we'll do a lot of in Spain, the world doesn't just stop around you.
Two more things I wanna share and then my time will be up! Ha, so i have come to learn in the MTC that I'm actually working to be fluent in 2 languages, other than Spanish, we're working to learn the language of the Spirit, which is a lot more important. Ha, but there was just this one day in class we were talking about how prayer is our communication with God and our teacher sort of opened up a discussion about why we think prayer is important. I had a thought, sort of something I learned from Elder Chambers one time when he wrote to me that was eye opening for me.. Ha but I didn't really say anything at first, cuz I wanted to let other people talk. Ha but then I just got one of those slightly heart wrenching moments where you know you should bear your testimony.. Ha, so I decided to share my this little comment and right after one of the Elders in our district was like, "OH my gosh! Hermana Nelson, I've never thought of that before, wow, I'm oh my gosh, speechless.. " He was just going on and on and I just thought, hmm I guess he really needed to hear that, so the point isn't to say, "I'm eloquent." but there is power in following the Spirit, even when we're not sure if what we're thinking is a prompting or just a nice thought. Cool learning experience for me.
Lastly, just wanted to close with a cool promise in one of our past Devotionals that I've forgotten to mention, Elder Stephen B. Allen came and towards the very end of his talk he said that we each have angels assigned to guard and protect us as the Lord's missionaries and that many of our guardian angels have recently passed through the veil and our going to be with us.. What a sweet tender mercy, I guess I sort of felt like, "Well, I hope Whitney can be close to me, if she's not TOO busy." But as he was speaking I realized, duh, of course Whitney would want to be looking out for me and I won't go into detail because I don't want anybody to think I'm crazy but I really can feel her at certain times, which I didn't have back at home. I am so grateful, I know with all of my heart that the Plan of Salvation is real, I can't get through a lesson with our investigators without being moved to emotion, this means everything to me. Families are forever, if we can each do our part. This is all made possible through the Savior and his sacrifice and only through faith in his Atonement can we return and live with God again. The Gospel is true, and such great news! I love each of you.
Hermana Nelson
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