So...yeah. This week was pretty sweet. We were able to see a lot of miracles and laugh a little.
First off, Thank you Jill and Family for the package!! It was so fun to receive, and Ashlyn, you are so beautiful! Thank you for sending me your announcement!
Second off,
We were nearing the end of our day, and all of our plans had fallen through, so we went to the main road and decided to contact everyone we saw until the end of the day...and...we got to the road and it was empty. Not a soul, until we saw that there was a security guard in his little box thing, writing Jesús te ama (Jesus loves you) on the windows. So we were like...okay, sign. So we went to talk to him, and after we figured out how to get his attention, he came out and began to talk to us. We talked to him about the Book of Mormon, and when we offered it to him, he declined by describing to us a dream that he had supposedly had. In this dream, he had seen 2 girls, one with brown skin and the other a blonde, and that they were enticing all of the men to go to them and then they proceeded to eat them. And then rode off on their dinosaurs. I kid you not, that is what he said. While trying not to burst out laughing, we were like...if you don't want it, just say no, we won't bite. We thought it was pretty funny:)
On the more spiritual side, we had a wonderful week. Eduardo, an investigator from Palma Loma, was baptized on Saturday, and I was able to call and talk to him a little. He has progressed so much and just goes to show how the gospel can change our lives for the better, it doesn't matter what we have done.
We have 3 people with baptismal dates for this weekend, but we aren't sure if any of them are going to make it, because Satan is working hard on them. We have the Arrua Family. The elders worked a lot with them, but could never get them to commit to a date, because the husband doesn't want his wife to get baptized. We were able to put a date, and we fasted with them on Friday so that they would be able to reach this goal. Yesterday, Ramona (the wife) still wasn't sure, so she talked with the bishop, who told her to wait until she had the approval from her husband. We were kind of ticked, but then we realized that it would be better that way. We think. Keep them in your prayers!!
Other than that, we are just working hard, finding new people. When we fasted on Friday, we tried hard to find new people that would accept the baptismal invitation. We found 2! Juana lives behind our house, and we had talked before with her mother-in-law, but we had never tried to talk with her. When we prayed before leaving to start proselyting, it came into my head that we should go and talk with her. We went and were able to have a great lesson on the Plan of Salvation. The other miracle was Joana. We had contacted her house before, but she was way busy with her kids, so we finally followed up and had a lesson on repentance. She had her first baby when she was 17, and since then has been involved with drugs. She is awesome and is ready to start over. Our last miracle was Jessica. She was a referral from a member and we contacted her mom on Wednesday, and then we went back on Friday. She told us that she would come to church, and she did! She came because she has a friend who is member, and a wonderful example of how members should be. There are lots of people who don't want to talk with us because of bad examples, but if they have had a good example, there isn't anything better:)
The time has gone by SO FAST. Seriously, it seems like yesterday that I was crying my eyes out in the airport before leaving. And now, everyone is asking me "are you ready to go??", and I am like...no. Not even a little bit. Normally we don't receive our travel plans until our last transfer, so I think that is when I will be receiving them.
Anyway, on a more trunky note, EVERYONE asks us if we have boyfriends. It is RIDICULOUS. It makes me think that the main topic of conversation with the elders was their girlfriends, because the first thing they ask is if we left someone. Eesh.
I hope that you all have a good week, thank you for all of your support, and now that Josh is in the field (okay, weird,) keep him in your prayers!! I love you!
Love,
Hermana Farish
Monday, July 27, 2015
Monday, July 20, 2015
Rolls Dude!
Dear Everyone,
This week went so well until I opened up my email and realized that Josh will be leaving this week...what in the weird!! I know that he will be an amazing missionary and will be able to help so many people.
We had an awesome week this week, lots and lots of rain, but it was fine. We had zone conference on Thursday, and it was a little different than usual. President McMullin spoke about the dangers of pornography, and how, in a world where it is shown everywhere, we can protect our minds, spirits, testimonies, and companions.
He told us to close our eyes and make a video. We were like...what? But he had us think of the day when we will be sealed in the temple. He said, you need to plan every single detail, from the paint on the walls of the sealing room, to the chandelier. He told us that if we can make this our goal, if we can have this video playing constantly in our minds, we will not have a problem with the pornography, because we know what awaits us in the temple, on the day that we are sealed to someone for the eternities. We will be able to look away and not have that temptation, not even go near that line. It was a powerful reminder of what we can accomplish, and what needs to happen in order to get there. I am so grateful for the gospel and the knowledge that we have. It is so...so...dunno, so precious a gift.
This week we found a lady named Jessica, we did follow up on a street contact, and we were able to talk with her for a few minutes. She is a single mom with a 3 year old girl who has severe brain damage due to a leak in the bag that the baby was in while she was in the tummy(sorry, I don't remember what it is called in English). She is amazing and we are planning on helping her out a lot.
I am surprised how much I thought of home this week. Everyone asks me how much time I have, and when I say 11 months, they are like..AHHHH you are almost done, are you so excited and blahblahblah, and I have tried so incredibly hard to not think about it. Today my plaque fell off in the bus and I was freaking out. I felt so...off without it. I am trying so hard not to be trunky, because I know that I will regret it afterwards.
The popes visit was ridiculous. There are reruns still playing on most of the channels of all of the miracles he did...and how is it that he can heal people? I have been trying to think it through but I can't figure it out. There is the scripture that talks about how all of the people who said to Jesus that they had done miracles in his name but he didn't know them...no se.
I am doing fine, loving life, working hard. Sometimes I feel so inadequate that I let my faith down a little, but I am working on that. In Palma Loma I learned patience and humility, and I am here to learn about faith. It is so interesting how there is something specific to learn in every area. I cannot even express my love for these people. I love helping them, I love feeling the spirit with them, and I love them so much. I love being a missionary, and even though it is the hardest thing that I have ever done. It is so worth it, so incredibly worth it. Thank you for giving me this opportunity to come here and learn how to be a good servant of our Lord.
Also, Eduardo, from Palma Loma will be baptized this week!! Junior also will be baptized this week!!! Also, Vicente, was a reference from a member, has a date for the 1st of August, we will see how that goes!!
I love being here, I love the cool weather, and I hope that you all have a good week!
Love,
Hermana Farish
This week went so well until I opened up my email and realized that Josh will be leaving this week...what in the weird!! I know that he will be an amazing missionary and will be able to help so many people.
We had an awesome week this week, lots and lots of rain, but it was fine. We had zone conference on Thursday, and it was a little different than usual. President McMullin spoke about the dangers of pornography, and how, in a world where it is shown everywhere, we can protect our minds, spirits, testimonies, and companions.
He told us to close our eyes and make a video. We were like...what? But he had us think of the day when we will be sealed in the temple. He said, you need to plan every single detail, from the paint on the walls of the sealing room, to the chandelier. He told us that if we can make this our goal, if we can have this video playing constantly in our minds, we will not have a problem with the pornography, because we know what awaits us in the temple, on the day that we are sealed to someone for the eternities. We will be able to look away and not have that temptation, not even go near that line. It was a powerful reminder of what we can accomplish, and what needs to happen in order to get there. I am so grateful for the gospel and the knowledge that we have. It is so...so...dunno, so precious a gift.
This week we found a lady named Jessica, we did follow up on a street contact, and we were able to talk with her for a few minutes. She is a single mom with a 3 year old girl who has severe brain damage due to a leak in the bag that the baby was in while she was in the tummy(sorry, I don't remember what it is called in English). She is amazing and we are planning on helping her out a lot.
I am surprised how much I thought of home this week. Everyone asks me how much time I have, and when I say 11 months, they are like..AHHHH you are almost done, are you so excited and blahblahblah, and I have tried so incredibly hard to not think about it. Today my plaque fell off in the bus and I was freaking out. I felt so...off without it. I am trying so hard not to be trunky, because I know that I will regret it afterwards.
The popes visit was ridiculous. There are reruns still playing on most of the channels of all of the miracles he did...and how is it that he can heal people? I have been trying to think it through but I can't figure it out. There is the scripture that talks about how all of the people who said to Jesus that they had done miracles in his name but he didn't know them...no se.
I am doing fine, loving life, working hard. Sometimes I feel so inadequate that I let my faith down a little, but I am working on that. In Palma Loma I learned patience and humility, and I am here to learn about faith. It is so interesting how there is something specific to learn in every area. I cannot even express my love for these people. I love helping them, I love feeling the spirit with them, and I love them so much. I love being a missionary, and even though it is the hardest thing that I have ever done. It is so worth it, so incredibly worth it. Thank you for giving me this opportunity to come here and learn how to be a good servant of our Lord.
Also, Eduardo, from Palma Loma will be baptized this week!! Junior also will be baptized this week!!! Also, Vicente, was a reference from a member, has a date for the 1st of August, we will see how that goes!!
I love being here, I love the cool weather, and I hope that you all have a good week!
Love,
Hermana Farish
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| My "Homemade" Rolls |
Monday, July 13, 2015
It Is Raining Here!
Anyways, this week was CRAZY. We were able to get a lot of new people, and we got to know the members and got some amazing references. In this area we have lunch and sometime dinner every day, and we are dying from so much food. The best death ever:)
Emmm...We met an inactive named Lorena. Her family is super active, they have a son in the mission, but she got married and stopped coming. Her husband had been baptized, but he also stopped coming. We had an amazing lesson this week, and they came to sacrament meeting! We were kind of bummed because they hadn't come earlier, so we were sitting in sacrament meeting kind of depressed when we saw their little daughter run up front, and we turned around and they had come!!
We also had a progressing investigator. We found him through a member family, we just went to their house and he just happened to be there. Junior is 17 years old, and is fulfilling every single compromiso that we give him. He has been coming to church for almost 3 months now, he is like gold. And..he doesn't live in our area. But hey, its all good, he is so strong and I know that the elders will do a good job with him.
Last night, we were stuck outside at about 8:30, and all of our plans had fallen through. Our options were: walk home slowly or go follow up on contacts. We decided to stop by a house we had contacted last weekend, a lady named Antonia. We had set an appointment with her for Saturday, but she didn't answer when we went, So we decided to try again and we found her and had an amazing lesson. When we contacted her last week, we left a card with the question, "will I be able to see my loved ones again?" and when she read the question, she started to cry, and we were able to testify to her of the plan of salvation, and when we went back last night, she told us that it would be okay to pass by again and talk with her and her husband. MIRACLE. I was so proud of Hermana Cordova, she was able to testify to Antonia and the spirit was SO strong. I can't wait to see how this turns out.
Something funny this week was that we found a lady named Snow White, who just happens to have 7 little grandchildren. We are still laughing about that one. We clapped and she let us in, and we were like, AHHH FAMILY but it turns out that they were baptized a while ago..that has happened about 3 times now. There are la lot of inactives but thats okay, gives us a lot to do.
Other than that, we have had a good week, Junior gets baptized next weekend, and we are working to find more. I love this experience, and I am grateful to my Heavenly Father for letting me come. I love you all and hope that you have a good week!
Hermana Farish
Emmm...We met an inactive named Lorena. Her family is super active, they have a son in the mission, but she got married and stopped coming. Her husband had been baptized, but he also stopped coming. We had an amazing lesson this week, and they came to sacrament meeting! We were kind of bummed because they hadn't come earlier, so we were sitting in sacrament meeting kind of depressed when we saw their little daughter run up front, and we turned around and they had come!!
We also had a progressing investigator. We found him through a member family, we just went to their house and he just happened to be there. Junior is 17 years old, and is fulfilling every single compromiso that we give him. He has been coming to church for almost 3 months now, he is like gold. And..he doesn't live in our area. But hey, its all good, he is so strong and I know that the elders will do a good job with him.
Last night, we were stuck outside at about 8:30, and all of our plans had fallen through. Our options were: walk home slowly or go follow up on contacts. We decided to stop by a house we had contacted last weekend, a lady named Antonia. We had set an appointment with her for Saturday, but she didn't answer when we went, So we decided to try again and we found her and had an amazing lesson. When we contacted her last week, we left a card with the question, "will I be able to see my loved ones again?" and when she read the question, she started to cry, and we were able to testify to her of the plan of salvation, and when we went back last night, she told us that it would be okay to pass by again and talk with her and her husband. MIRACLE. I was so proud of Hermana Cordova, she was able to testify to Antonia and the spirit was SO strong. I can't wait to see how this turns out.
Something funny this week was that we found a lady named Snow White, who just happens to have 7 little grandchildren. We are still laughing about that one. We clapped and she let us in, and we were like, AHHH FAMILY but it turns out that they were baptized a while ago..that has happened about 3 times now. There are la lot of inactives but thats okay, gives us a lot to do.
Other than that, we have had a good week, Junior gets baptized next weekend, and we are working to find more. I love this experience, and I am grateful to my Heavenly Father for letting me come. I love you all and hope that you have a good week!
Hermana Farish
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| My new greenie, Hermana Cordova |
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| P-Day Fun! |
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| Can you shave a balloon? |
Monday, July 6, 2015
(Hashtag)flabbergasted
Bueno...
Lots of you guys asked me how the transfers went...let me tell ya...flabbergasted would be the word I would use to describe the transfer.
I don't know why our zone leaders thought of this, but to give out the changes this time they had little objects that represented what would happen with the changes. So...when I received a binky and a pink bar of soap, I was like...WHAT?? So, now I am training and doing a pinkwash, which is when hermanas open a new area or replace the elders. What fun.
My new companion is Hermana Còrdova, from Peru. She is 21 years old, and is a lot of fun. She played libero on the Peruvian National Volleyball team, and is one year away from graduating in civil engineering (Joel!!!). It is a little different training a 21 year old than a 30 year old, but hey, lots of fun. Our new area is in Salado, in a city called Limpio about 35 minutes away from Luque and Palma Loma. Super far. It is way different, a lot of green and cleanliness, which is awesome. The ward functions decently well, which is also an improvement, so we will have fun going around, getting lost, and talking with everyone we happen to see.
At first, I was really worried about how ON EARTH I was going to be able to do this, but I know that Heavenly Father (and President McMullin) know what I can do, and that even if I make several hundred mistakes, I am where I am supposed to be. We are the first hermanas ever to enter...so we will see how everything turns out. Pretty good thus far. AND we found an old semiautomatic airsoft rifle with bbs and everything in our house. Someone had an interesting Pday:)
So, this week, we had goodbyes on Tuesday, which was rough. I grew to love Palma Loma, even with all of the fights between members, gossip, and all of that fun stuff. I learned a lot, and I should have known that when I said I wanted to leave the area (this was in December) I would stay there half my mission. I would say that the biggest thing that I have learned was to be humble and to listen to the Spirit. It was something really interesting to make mistakes and to keep trying to learn how to do the things right. Hermana Francani stayed in Palma Loma as the senior companion. She will do great:)
Apart from that, this week was just getting adjusted, cleaning up after the elders (it was DISGUSTING), and enjoying freezing to death. Seriously, I told someone how much time I had in the mission and she told me, wow, you are almost done! I was like...um...no. I don't want to be almost done. I am so happy here, I love being a missionary and sharing with others what we have to say. I love this work, I love my Heavenly Father and am grateful to Him for trusting me enough to let me bumble my way through this adventure. I hope you all have a good week, and that you can enjoy the rest of summer!
Love,
Hermana Farish
Lots of you guys asked me how the transfers went...let me tell ya...flabbergasted would be the word I would use to describe the transfer.
I don't know why our zone leaders thought of this, but to give out the changes this time they had little objects that represented what would happen with the changes. So...when I received a binky and a pink bar of soap, I was like...WHAT?? So, now I am training and doing a pinkwash, which is when hermanas open a new area or replace the elders. What fun.
My new companion is Hermana Còrdova, from Peru. She is 21 years old, and is a lot of fun. She played libero on the Peruvian National Volleyball team, and is one year away from graduating in civil engineering (Joel!!!). It is a little different training a 21 year old than a 30 year old, but hey, lots of fun. Our new area is in Salado, in a city called Limpio about 35 minutes away from Luque and Palma Loma. Super far. It is way different, a lot of green and cleanliness, which is awesome. The ward functions decently well, which is also an improvement, so we will have fun going around, getting lost, and talking with everyone we happen to see.
At first, I was really worried about how ON EARTH I was going to be able to do this, but I know that Heavenly Father (and President McMullin) know what I can do, and that even if I make several hundred mistakes, I am where I am supposed to be. We are the first hermanas ever to enter...so we will see how everything turns out. Pretty good thus far. AND we found an old semiautomatic airsoft rifle with bbs and everything in our house. Someone had an interesting Pday:)
So, this week, we had goodbyes on Tuesday, which was rough. I grew to love Palma Loma, even with all of the fights between members, gossip, and all of that fun stuff. I learned a lot, and I should have known that when I said I wanted to leave the area (this was in December) I would stay there half my mission. I would say that the biggest thing that I have learned was to be humble and to listen to the Spirit. It was something really interesting to make mistakes and to keep trying to learn how to do the things right. Hermana Francani stayed in Palma Loma as the senior companion. She will do great:)
Apart from that, this week was just getting adjusted, cleaning up after the elders (it was DISGUSTING), and enjoying freezing to death. Seriously, I told someone how much time I had in the mission and she told me, wow, you are almost done! I was like...um...no. I don't want to be almost done. I am so happy here, I love being a missionary and sharing with others what we have to say. I love this work, I love my Heavenly Father and am grateful to Him for trusting me enough to let me bumble my way through this adventure. I hope you all have a good week, and that you can enjoy the rest of summer!
Love,
Hermana Farish
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