Tuesday, May 28, 2013

May 20th, 2013 Stephanie



                                                                  May 20th,  2013                                                              
Dear family,
   So a lot has changed.............. I am in a new area, I am with a new companion, I have a new calling and well I am not going to lie I need you prayers so much right now. To answer your questions, I am in the area la America and I am with Hermana Messina!!!! That is the totally sick part. I am so excited and well..... God knew I needed her she is amazing. I am learning so much. We are working so hard. I have never had more lessons or more investigators on the mission. So the new calling is I am one of 4 Sister training leaders in the mission. This is a new calling in the church and we are kind of pioneering ... we have no idea what we are suppose to do...... ok that’s not true. We know what we need to do but to figure out how to do it is what we are trying to do. We are called to do interchanges with all the Sisters in the mission to train and help them reach their potential. There are four sisters right now because they are splitting the mission. But after the mission split we will be over all the new sisters that will be coming in. I am, well, scared to death to tell you all the truth. We are needed to train all the Sisters and well I haven't trained even one. I need your prayers for Wednesday and Thursday because we will be speaking in the multi zone conferences this week. We have a lot of expectations. The President told us he wants our area to be the example for the mission. He wants us to do something that has never been done before and we are going to do it. He wants us to baptize 10 people a week, woo...... we are going to do it but I need your prayers. I feel like I was just thrown in with the best of the best and I am playing catch up. We are teaching 6 to 8 lesson a day. We walk so fast I hit the pillow at night and I am so tired. But soooooo happy!!! I love my companion. She is teaching me so much. This is my letter to president this week.
Dear President,

   I love my area and my companion. I am learning so so so much.  We have an area that is full of recent converts and investigators and it is amazing to go and work there. We literally sat in a recent convert’s house and the investigators came to us. We sat on a couch and we gave lesson after lesson with this member. The spirit was so strong.  The colonial is on fire with missionary work. The members are grabbing people off the street and inviting them to listen to us. We have lessons in the street and people stop to hear what we are doing. I love going to that colonial. When we leave everyone is asking us when or if we are coming back and if it is too far off they insist that we come back sooner.
    My eyes were opened to how the work of the Lord should be that if we truly work with the members the work will go so much more faster and more effective. We are going to baptize every week. We are committed to do so and we will achieve it with the help of the Lord.
    I am learning so much because we are teaching so much. I really want to learn the language of the spirit and learn to follow it faster in my life and I feel like this calling will stretch me in so many ways and help me to depend upon the Lord even more. Thank you for this opportunity and I pray I will be able to be all you need me to be. I will give my all to the Lord in order to serve in the way he and you need me to. Thank you for all you do and the time you give to serve and help us individually.  You are helping me become the best person I can be and for that I am truly grateful.
 
So cool story.... we went to the Bien a Vista the amazing colonial that is on fire with missionary work. We were looking for a contact and we past a recent convert on the street and he was with a lot of his friends just sitting outside enjoying the fresh air. A lot of people do that here. But, we passed and stopped to say hi. We had taught some of his friends before and we stopped and asked if his friends had read the pamphlet we gave them. One said he read a little and asked when we were going to visit him again. We were like sweet and pulling out our planners to see what day when the friend said, “well where are you going right now?” and we said, “our cite fell” and he said,  “Great, he is here. You are here. Teach him now”...... we were like “Right, what are we doing.” So, we pulled out our hymn books and we had a lesson in the street with 3 investigators and 2 recent converts and well it was amazing. We were teaching the lesson and a guy passed by selling bread and he stopped and asked what was going on. One of our investigators.... (Golden this one) he said, “We are hearing the good word of God.  It’s amazing. You should take a minute and listen. It’s worth your time.” Me and my companion looked at each other and wow no greater feeling. I love being a missionary. I don’t know what happened to the bread guy. He said he would listen the next time we are there so hopefully.....but I was just amazed at this area were the investigators are the ones feeling something so great, so new, so happy and they want to share it. I was humbled. I am having to learn how to hear the spirit so much more now. We teach so many lessons we don’t have enough time in the morning to prepare for all of them. So, we literally go into lessons unprepared and rely completely on the Lord and his spirit and it is amazing what happens.
  I love being a missionary it is the best job in the world. Jake and Maren give all to the Lord, all you heart, all your might, all your strength (until you drop at night on your bed) give all you mind.... don’t think about home. What you are going to do when you get back nothing........don’t fight against God give him all of you and he will mold you into what he has planned. He can’t do it if he only has part of you. He needs all. Let go of all your weapons of war. Don’t hold anything back from the Lord. I am just learning this and if you can learn it faster you will be so much happier and not look back and have regrets.....be better than your sister. I love you and pray for all of you family but I will have you know I am trying to well to put it nicely forget about you.....wow that sound horrible but I am trying to give all to the Lord and love him first and foremost. I have always said I want my husband to love the Lord more than me but I can’t expect that if I love my family more than God. I am trying to let God of everything to turn everything over to the Lord and I know when I do, my ability to love you will grow and my happiness will be greater. It’s just the part of letting go that is hard but we make the choice everyday ......we need to stop fighting against God. What are you holding on to...... what must change to give all of ourselves to the Lord?
    Oh family, I know this gospel is true. I love working for the Lord. There is no better feeling. I need your prayers and especially for my Spanish that I will be able to talk in front of everyone this week and that they can understand me. Pray that I may have the gift of tongues ...please I need it. hah 
This is the Lord’s time Jake and Maren. Be 24 hour missionaries
I love you all,
Hermana Hale

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