Mexico Week 50 -- Ups and Downs

Buenas Tardes to my sweet family!  This week was filled with ups and downs! 

First things first, the pictures! 

This week yours truly, the sister missionaries of Tlaquepaque planned and hosted Ward FHE this week. We decided to talk about the Gospel of Jesus Christ but made up some games. We split up into four teams and started out with faith. We decorated a box and filled it with lots of things and they had to have faith that the chosen object was in the box even though they couldn’t see it! The first team to find the object moved on to repentance. They had to completely cover one person with toilet paper! Get it .. white .. becoming a new person .. It was great!  Then they moved on to baptism and we renew our baptismal covenants by taking the sacrament. One person from their team had to eat a pretty large piece of bread and drink a whole bottle of water. Don’t ask me why one team chose the only girl on the team to do that challenge!  Ha! Ha!   Then we moved on to the Holy Ghost where they had to go back to back and walk from one side of the room to the other because we have to trust and lean on the Spirit’s guidance. Then we ended with endure to the end. We started out saying the first team with someone that could hula-hoop for 30 seconds.  After about 10 minutes of total failure and a lot of laughing, we said the first team with someone who lasted 3 seconds. Some of our recent converts went and we were all laughing too hard. It was a good night and although we were few in number, the Spirit was strong and little by little we can be more unified and help our investigators, less active members, and recent converts to progress. 

Speaking of hula-hoops ... this is our new exercise regime in the morning! Haha, the two of us laughing and hula hooping and it really does make you sore! 

This week we traveled to Cruz del Sur again because I had to sign Visa documents, but it was worth it when we found this painting waiting for the bus. I LOVED IT! 

Today we had a zone activity! We got there a little late but we decorated a paper for how we can increase our faith this week, played some minute to win it games and had a potluck.  Let me just say, potluck is so interesting when you’re all poor missionaries!

The older hermana is Hermana Tere. She has years in the church but for about two years hasn’t been going in order to take care of her husband. I have 6 months visiting her and seeing that she is so strong and so faithful, but she just missed going to church. One day she told us that things were going to change and that she had made some pretty big decisions. She now has two weeks going to church! She is too sweet. 

The little boy is Sammy! Ah, he’s one of our favorites. We’ve been working a lot so that his parents can become active again and this past weekend his mom went to the temple! His parents are taking the temple prep classes so that they can be sealed as an eternal family! 

This week we worked a lot with Hermano Victor! He has a couple living with him and well the husband is never there, but the wife is super sweet! This week we taught the restoration and about keeping the sabbath day holy. It has been so awesome to watch Hermano Victor share his testimony. I kind of felt guilty for not saying anything when we got here and the baptism was all planned and I kind of doubted how ready he was, but he is so great and so special. He needs a lot of help and we are right there with him in his conversion process. But wow, he does have a testimony! One day we were teaching and he says, “Hermanas, you bring the strongest Spirit here!  I don’t know if you feel it (he says to his friend) but I do and wow, y’all are strong.” It made us feel pretty great and we are going to keep working with them! 

Hermano Jose and Hermana Elsa went to the temple for the first time! Woo! Hoo! It’s a little frustrating as they felt lost and like no one was helping them out, but little by little they’ll get the groove down! It’s serious that we have to come in December because Hermana Elsa just tells me, All of the missionaries say they will come, but then you get back to your normal life and well, it just doesn’t happen!  We have to go to Hermano Oscar’s temple sealing. Oh and Hermana Elsa told us that the daughter of Hermano Oscar got baptized this past Saturday, she and I have the same age.  How awesome is that!

This week it was a little hard to find people at home and we got a little discouraged a few times, but decided to be productive in our long days in the street.  Let’s just say I almost know all of the Articles of Faith in Spanish.  Ha! Ha!  I know that the Lord tries us and patience will be my lifelong battle. I have been trying so hard as a missionary to be patient and humble because I know that they are major weaknesses of mine. I feel like the Lord is helping me to improve so much but also that I’m still lacking a lot!  Good thing we have a whole mortal life to be better and better and better. 

We’re going to end with the happiest news!! The other picture of me at church is with Hermana Judith! She is our golden investigator! We taught her about the importance of reading the scriptures and praying every day and she says, “Now I get it. The Lord kind of tests of right? We all have so much to do and are busy, but He wants to know if we take time for Him. I know I can find time every day to be reading.”  Wow, right?!  We started teaching her about the gospel of Jesus Christ and she really does just soak it all up! She has such a strong desire to repent and to keep learning. The bishop asked her in gospel principles how she’s felt in her time with the missionaries and she said that every day she was more and more convinced. We are so proud of her and absolutely love teaching her!

I love the Lord and I love what I’m doing. It tests and tries me every week but every week I feel like I’ve grown. I love y’all so much and you’re always in my prayers!