October 8, 2012

Dear Family

First things First...... HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!!!  HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!! TO YOU HAPPY BIRTHDAY  DEAR TANIA, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!!!!

I wish I could be there to celebrate with you. Know that I am thinking of you on your birthday and that I hope you have a great party. I love you so much never forget. You may have to wait a little while to get your present because I haven’t bought it yet, waiting until I find the perfect thing. So don’t worry it is coming you and Nathan’s but it may be a little while, so sorry.

OK Second, I cant believe the announcement in conference, I was so excited! So my only question is Jacob, when will you join the army of God as one of the first of the prepared generation to stand and testify of your Lord and God at the age of 18?!?! I am so exited for you, and Nathan wow, just think you only have two more years!!!! And Maren, if you are thinking about it.... it is becoming the best decision I have ever made.

Family, I have so much to write you this week because it has been a week of miracles, I want to thank you all for the prayers you have offered for my investigators and me, I have felt them this week as I have seen the hand of god in my life and the lives of my investigators.

First off, on Tuesday we had an amazing lesson with Carlos and he is trying to give up coffee. He told us that he didn’t have a glass of coffee the whole
night last night... he works night sometimes. He was smiling while
telling us it was the most amazing demonstration of faith I have ever seen. He also made it to conference on Saturday and Sunday, we will see what
he thought about it this Wednesday, it was a miracle too because I woke
up the night before we taught him with a really high fever and I had a
cold and a head ache. I was praying so hard to be able to go and teach
him, we went and I was strengthened, we all felt the spirit and were
crying by the end. It was a 2 hour great lesson. After though, I got
so sick we went home. I tried to sleep the whole day and get better, which I did
the next day it was much better and we went out and began working again ...the nurse thought that I might have had Denge ( I don’t know how to spell it ) but you get it from the mosquitos here. There are 4 types but one of the symptoms is a high fever and it hits you fast and all of the sudden. But I am find now and all so don’t worry.

The next miracle happened Wednesday night we were teaching a young man, age 14, who hangs out with the young men in our ward we had taught him the first lesson and were about to teach him the second when one of his friends said look he his wanting to get the lessons for baptism he wants to get baptized.... we were so excited and were explaining to him that is want we were doing giving him those lessons to prepare him for baptism. You should have seen his face when we told him we could baptize him this next Saturday. He was so exited. So that was miracle number two.

Number three happened when we went on Thursday to go teach Magdalena, we hadn’t seen her in over a week, and I am not going to lie, I was not very optimistic because the last time we visited her she said very firmly she needed more time before she decided to get baptized. Me and Hermana Sanchez were praying and trying to find something that was going to help her see that she had already had her answer. We found two scriptures in D&C that were perfect when we read
them one is in D&C 6 and the other D&C 9 about how god is telling us how he answers our questions with our thoughts and feelings and if you have a stupor of thought then it is wrong. We had prepared these scriptures like a week before we were going to teach her and in all honesty when we were in the lesson I forgot why we chose these scriptures for her. And we read the first one and my companion looked at we with the look “you are going to talk about this scripture” I was like “Oh no!” Ha I said a little prayer and I opened my mouth and began to
talk about what the scripture was saying and the coolest thing happed, my mind was lead to experiences in my life when I received answers and how I needed to trust and have confidence in those answers and follow through with the answers even if I didn’t feel I was ready, or didn’t want to.... I finished with my testimony and looked at my companion, she read the second scripture in D&C 9 and gave her testimony really fast and it was powerful the spirit was there and we waited and Magdalena face changed and she said “Thank you, this in the answer that
I have been waiting for and you gave it to me here.” She raised the scriptures and said “Its so plain.” She told us that she had a friend at work, a really good friend but that didn’t like the Mormons who had been talking to her a lot about the church and how she had been thinking about everything we had been teaching her and when we read that scripture with her she said it was her answer. Me and Hermana Sanchez were so happy the spirit was so strong there and at the end Magdalena said she had something she wanted to tell us on Sunday at conference... we were like ok… we didn’t want to push too much so we just said we will see you Sunday.

Conference was so good, so many questions that I had were answered and Elder Holland’s talk was a chastisement for me and I need to be better and having my motivation for doing everything be that I love the Lord. But no worries, I am working on it and so. I didn’t get to watch it in English; everything was in Spanish except the music. During the sessions I would get small headaches because I was thinking so hard to understand what they were saying. Ha! But in the end I got the gist of it but I cant wait for the Ensign to come so I can study the talks. So many of our investigators were able to make it and it was so cool to listen and hear... oh this is for this person, I hope they are listening... I want to testify that god speaks through his prophets and that our questions can be answered though his servants. Oh! But Sunday was the best, after the first session we saw Magdalena and we went to go talk to her, we talked for a little and then she asked when do you guys have your next baptism service? We were like this Saturday... she said because I wanted to talk to you guys... I want to get baptized!!! Me and Hermana Sanchez were like “Really!?”... We were so happy; we both took her into our arms and hugged her. I started to cry, my joy was so great to know that she wanted to make this step in her life. We pulled away and were talking about how excited we were for her and we cried and what I remember most was her face. She couldn’t stop smiling!!! She was happy with her decision and we told her that God was too and that we were so happy. We hugged her like three more times and she asked what do I need to do? And I was like umm, I don’t know, this is my first person that wants to get baptized other than Chepe, the 14 yr. old. So I looked at my companion and she looked at me with the same look. Ha! It was so funny. I pulled out our planner and told her that we had taught her a lot but we still had to teach her something’s before so we were going to need to see her everyday this week to finish teaching her. She said that would be ok so we planned it all out and I told her now that she had made this decision Satan was going to work hard against her so she needed to have faith in the answer that she got, she said she would. So please keep her in your prayers along with Chepe so that they will be able to get baptized this weekend...

Oh so really cool every companionship in our Zone is going to baptized someone this Saturday so we are planning a night in white where everyone dresses in white and we all meet in the same chapel to hold the baptisms. We will be baptizing 13 people on the 13th of Oct!!! On your birthday Nate!! Know that I will be so happy on your Birthday and I hope you will be able to feel some of that to know that 13 people will be making this great decision to follow the Lord on your birthday. So pray that we will be able to make this event happen and that everything will go smoothly.

Family this week was amazing I have seen God change hearts and work miracles. He lives!!! He is in this work I am so grateful for this opportunity to be working with him in this cause. Jacob prepare yourself ... you have been prepared for this time in your life there is nothing greater than to see the change that happens to the people that you work so hard for them to come to the knowledge of this gospel and the knowledge of their Lord and Savoir. Be Excited!!! It is the greatest and you will be the happiest you have ever been, and the most tired, but it is worth it. Family, know that I love you, know that I love the Lord. I know this gospel is true.  I have to go... until next week love you.

Hermana Hale