Wow another week has flown by. I can't believe Christmas is almost here. The weather here never changes, so it's hard to believe that it's December when it hardly rains and it's so warm during the day.
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| My bff Sebastian. He's the cousin of my convert Pamela. I'm pretty sure he loves me way too much but it's adorable. He's four :) |
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| You aren't a true Californian if you don't check out the local Mexican restaurant even if you're in South America. I thought of you Carm and had the quesadilla extra queso con pollo. It was quite delicious. Oh and the sombrero was necesary. (I'm forgetting how to spell...) |
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árbol de Navidad
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So getting people to come to church is probably the biggest challenge we have as missionaries. On Saturday we had ten people with a baptismal date. On Sunday only one. Every time that an investigator doesn't attend church we have to change their date. It's so important to go to church! It's the only place where we can partake of the sacrament and renew our covenants, and we have the opportunity to do so every week! It's such a blessing. Like I mentioned, we did have one person at church this past Sunday, which was honestly a miracle.
Ricardo is the son of Nancy (an active member) and the cousin of Pamela (our recent convert). He's been receiving the missionaries practically this entire year, but due to issues he's had with the Word of Wisdom and other problematic things he hasn't progressed. We were just about to drop him because he wasn't progressing and he finally told us his whole story and we were shocked about what was going on. We finally were able to understand and know how to better help him. Now he's reading his Book of Mormon every day, is praying daily, and he came to church! He hasn't had issues with the Word of Wisdom in over a week! He is setting goals to change and he is reaching them! It is absolutely amazing to see. It's just another testimony to me that the Gospel of Jesus Christ truly can change anyone's life. It doesn't matter what problems we face, the Savior is always ready and willing to help us if and only if we do our part.
Not only was it a week of progression for Ricardo but also for me and my companion as well. We have grown a lot together in this past week and we learn more and more every day about how to communicate with each other. I've learned so much from being her companion. I've learned about the importance of continually striving to develop Christ-like attributes. If we aren't striving to be more like Christ every day, we are only making life harder on ourselves. Christ overcame all. He experienced and suffered all of our pains and afflictions. He understands. He knows what we feel and wants to help us overcome the challenges and struggles we face everyday. His instructions are simple, "Come follow me." If we follow the example of the Savior we will be so much happier, the trials will become learning experiences, and we will be able to recognize more the blessings we are receiving each and everyday from our loving Heavenly Father. I have such a long way to go, and it's overwhelming at times to think about how much work I have to do and how many things I need to change to become more like Him but I know that He will show me the way. All I have to do is trust in Him and do my part. We won't always be perfect in our efforts, but through His Atonement when we fall we will always be able to stand back up and try again.
Christmas is the perfect time to stand back up and try again. It's the perfect time to press the restart button and dedicate ourselves once again to strive to be more like our Savior Jesus Christ.
I hope all of you are happy and doing well. My greatest source of happiness is the scriptures, so if you're feeling down or going through hard times just open up the scriptures! I can promise and testify that you will receive comfort, peace, and answers to the questions of your heart.
I love you all so much and I'm so grateful for this opportunity I have to serve the people of Ambato! Missionary life is the best!
Con todo mi amor,
Hermana B
P.S. Ether 12:27
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