So thank you, Camilla :)
I have come to the conclusion that these posts do not need organization...that it is ok to just blurt out all the random little stories and experiences from the week in no particular order and it will be ok. Hope y'all are ok with that :) (that y'all was for Steve, btdubs)
This Tuesday we had a Zone Conference with three different zones in the mission, for meetings and training and such. I was able share my testimony once again through singing with a group of five other Hermanas- I know that my Redeemer Lives. And in English! It was wonderful! And the conference was great, lots of good advice and ideas for reactivating members. We also talked a little bit about the Christmas meeting we are going to have on the 19th as a whole mission, and one of the things we are going to do is give a gift to Christ, similar to the stocking that we have in our house for Christ, where you write something you want to give Christ and put it in the stocking and then read it the next year. Ya see, that's why we need a mission president and his WIFE, because they are the ones that think of this cuteness for us homesick missionaries!
Every Thursday we have a three hour planning session for the whole week, and one part of it is that you talk, as a companionship, about the things you like about your comp and things, if any, that you would like to work on or change. I have noticed a trend in my two months now in the field...always in this part of the planning, my comp starts out with "Hermana Harkins, you're crazy...but its a good crazy...like, you just want to talk to everyone about how much you love the church."
:) yup! that's pretty much 100% ACCURATE.
By now, you all know about our two golden investigators, Alex and Francisco. They are still going strong, I will talk about them in a bit. But I wanted to share another experience about Francisco; this week, we contacted his younger brother. We know his house, but always teach at Alex's house, so we don't know Francisco's family. We were walking to another appointment and saw his brother leaning against the gate, texting. (What? What's texting? I don't remember...) They look JUST so much alike. So we talked to him, gave him a pass along, and he brought up that his brother is taking the discussions from two Hermanas. So we laughed about that and said yes, that's us, and does he talk about the gospel or the Book of Mormon at all with his family. He said a little, but that the most noticeable change has taken place in Francisco- he said that in the past three weeks, his brother has become happier and more outgoing- "A brand new Francisco" is what he said.
:) YAY!
We are reading the Book of Mormon straight through with an almost active again member, Hermana Violeni. She is fabulous and a little insane, I adore her. We were reading 1st Nephi 3 where Nephi kills Laban and- mind you, she has been a member for 7 years and this is the first time that she is reading the Book of Mormon- and she is gasping and adjusting her glasses and her mouth is gaping open and she is just aghast! She said "This is better than a soap opera!" I never thought I would hear that about the Book of Mormon...but what can I say? I have adventures every day. Adventura cada dia :)
Awesome experience from this week- we got to take Alex and Francisco to Santiago for a grounds tour of the temple! Just like in Salt Lake, there are sister missionaries in the east mission who are trained to give tours of the temple, and it was amazing. They were so attentive and captivated by the message. The best part was when they were sitting in a front foyer of the temple that people on tours can be in (that's a new bit of info for me, I thought it was amazing that they could be in the temple), and the spirit just hit us like a wall. As we were walking out, Francisco was especially hesitant to leave. When we asked him why, he said that he felt something so strong when he was sitting there, and didn't want to leave because he knew that it was something special about the temple.
:) YAY YAY YAY!!!!
And to close...I would like to share my testimony about fasting today. On Saturday, Hermana Velezquez and I decided to fast for our investigators, especially Alex. He is having a tough time trying to stop smoking, and we want so badly to help him, just didn't know exactly how. So, we fasted. When God says that he will pour out blessings, he doesn't say it because the words sound pretty together. He MEANS it. The blessings were literally poured out for us! We invited another one of our investigators to be baptized, we found two new people to teach, and a member offered us a ride home, simply because she saw us walking alone, at night, it was cold, and she just felt it was a good thing to do. I wish I had more time to eloquently and more accurately bear my testimony of this, but take my word for it- there is great power in fasting!
Church is true, folks. Be Bold, drink some hot chocolate with cinnamon for me, sing Baby its Cold Outside and think of Hermana Harkins in the 90 degree weather of Chile and be HAPPY with your white Christmas! Ciau!
Hermana Harkins
No comments:
Post a Comment