Would you just look at that light:)

Dear Everyone,

This week just flew by!!! It seems like every week just goes by faster and faster.

We had transfers this week, and I stayed in Palma Loma to finish training, going on 7 1/2 months here:) Who knew, Right?:)  Name that movie!!!:)

We had a crazy change in Palma Loma, we had a whitewash, which means that they took out the other sisters in the other half and put in elders.  At first, we were a little bummed, but I think that this is what Palma Loma needs.  They are pretty chill, Elder Ramirez from the Dominican Republic and Elder Jewkes from West Jordan.

We had a couple of rather large miracles this week.  We have been working for about 2 months with a family where the mom, Teli, is inactive and her partner, Eduardo, isn't a member.  Teli grew up in an active home, was sealed with her family and everything, but her parents separated and afterwards her dad committed suicide.  After that, she didn't really want anything to do with the church, and on
Sunday, (drum roll please!!!) she and Eduardo walked up to church, hand in hand with their 4 year old son.  I was like...AAAHHHHH!!! You need to get sealed!  Of course, my opinion doesn't really hold a lot of ground, but..igual no màs, it would be awesome:)  We are working with Eduardo so that he can read the Book of Mormon and gain a testimony of the doctrine as found there.

Another miracle is that we looked up another member's referral, and found the Diaz Family.  We had a couple of amazing lessons with them, but they weren't able to come to church because of the rain:(

I was actually thinking this week, I am so old.  There are so many new missionaries, and after being here in Palma Loma for 7 months, I am very used to being the person who knows what needs to happen, or where the people live, or all that.  I thought the other day...how crazy is that.  Seriously, the time is FLYING, and Hermana Betancourth finished her mission last week, and my trainer goes home this transfer.  SANTA VACA.  Seriously, I am like freaking out.  When Hermana Betancourth
came early in the morning she was going to leave, she stopped by to tell me goodbye and it was SO HARD.  I learned to love her so much and I miss her a lot.

I am loving the mission, it is my life.  It is my comfort zone, and it is so freaking hard.  But I figure that if it is hard, Heavenly Father thinks that I am strong enough to get through it and learn something
important.  I love talking with people, and having a new missionary as a companion has showed me how far I have come, and how Heavenly Father helped me to overcome all of my many fears.  I love these people, even if they are drunk, on drugs, lo que sea, les amo.

De la historia familiar, si, estamos trabajando mucho con ella.  Casi cada domingo llevamos a los miembros, menos activos, conversos recientes, quien sea, porque si ellos hacen su historia familiar, se
van a ir al templo, y todos necesitan esta experiencia. Nuestro presidente de misiòn nos dijo que usàramos los folletos de mi familia en los contactos.  Me gusta mucho eso porque es diferente, y las personas no lo esperan:)  (In essence this paragraph says that they use family history to work with the members to help them make it to the temple, and also use the familysearch booklet "My Family" in their contacting.)

Saturday night, we had cleaned the church and our lessons fell through, so naturally, it started to rain and it was the biggest lightning storm that I have ever seen.  We had one hour left and we were trying to follow up on some contacts that we had made.  We were kind of bummed, and we were the only people on the streets, so, to cheer ourselves up, we just started to sing a hymn that talks about light (I don't remember which one) and when we got to the part where it talked about how we always have light in our lives, there was a rather huge lightning strike, and I said, "would you just look at that light"  My companion looked at me like I was nuts, and then we just started to laugh and we were able to go to another lesson with an investigator who ended up giving us food, which was just great.

Anyway, the point is, sometimes we are in a time of darkness and storms.  There are things that happen that are scary and we feel like we are alone and that there isn't anyone who pays us attention or who we feel like understands us.  However, there are always blessings.  Sometimes they come in a form that we don't expect, but they are ALWAYS there.  I was reading in 1 Nephi the other day, in chapter 18, and it is when Nephi is tied up on the ship for so many days, and nothing that he or his family does can change the hearts of his brothers.  I love Nephi`s reaction to this trial.  he says:

14 And on the fourth day, which we had been driven back, the tempest began to be exceedingly sore.
15 And it came to pass that we were about to be swallowed up in the depths of the sea. And after we had been driven back upon the waters for the space of four days, my brethren began to see that the
judgments of God were upon them, and that they must perish save that they should repent of their iniquities; wherefore, they came unto me, and loosed the bands which were upon my wrists, and behold they had swollen exceedingly; and also mine ankles were much swollen, and great was the soreness thereof.
16 Nevertheless, I did look unto my God, and I did praise him all the day long; and I did not murmur against the Lord because of mine afflictions.

He was hurting, the ship and everyone on it was about to drown, and even with all of that, Nephi never let that interfere with his relationship with Heavenly Father.  Afterwards, Laman and Lemuel
finally realize that they need to change something so that they don't die.  In verse 20 it says,

20 And there was nothing save it were the power of God, which threatened them with destruction, could soften their hearts; wherefore, when they saw that they were about to be swallowed up in the depths of the sea they repented of the thing which they had done, insomuch that they loosed me.
21 And it came to pass after they had loosed me, behold, I took the compass, and it did work whither I desired it. And it came to pass that I prayed unto the Lord; and after I had prayed the winds did
cease, and the storm did cease, and THERE WAS A GREAT CALM.

I know we have storms, we have trials, things we can't control, like Nephi.  But if we can look for the blessings, and praise our Lord all the day long, he will bless us and give us the strength to endure until we have that great calm.  I love this gospel, I love the Book of Mormon, and I love sharing it with people so that they too can have that calm in their lives. I hope you all have a wonderful week, and that you can always look to your Lord and praise him for all of the blessings that He has given you.  I love you all!

Love,
Hermana Farish