Families Are Forever

It is P-day again!! and my EIGHT MONTH MARK!!!!!!

Can you believe it. Next month ill be hitting my HALF WAY MARK. Seriously, I can't believe time has gone by that fast!

But onto other things, this week was good! We had many different events that occurred this week that really helped us out, not only in our work, but with our selves and becoming better missionaries. 

Monday we had fun celebrating Mexico Independence day! Later that night we went contacting and got to talk to two of our referrals...too bad both aren't interested. The first house we stopped at the parents sent the little girl to the door to tell us that her parents weren't home, which is a pretty good sign that they aren't interested. Oh well, they will be contacted in the future! The second lady we talked to was a JW..so she was not too interested either. Before my mission I had never really ran into Jehovah's Witnesses, and now it is at least once a day that we see them or knock on a house where a JW lives. 

Tuesday not too much happened. We contacted a lot in the morning and boy in the weather a LOT nicer haha. I feel like I am not sweating the instant I step outside. We then did some service at the Food Bank and we actually had a work out. Hermana Robles and I were DEAD by the end of the 2 hours we were there. We had to shower cause we were so sweaty. The rest of the night was busy contacting and knocking on doors. 

Wednesday we contacted some more in the morning and then headed over to a potential investigator that we found in the beginning of the transfer who said she was interested in us coming back. So we went back and she let us right in and we taught her the Restoration and she loved it. She told us that she had gone to a Christian church and loved it way more than the Catholic church and so we were like "come to our church!" and she was like "YES, I want to !" and we asked her if it would just be her and she was like "nope, if I am going to church, my kids are going to church!" What a good answer haha. She seems so open to learning and reading the Book of Mormon and praying about it. We are excited to see where her learning goes. We then had some unexpected service at a members house in the ward. She was moving and needed her house to be cleaned and so all of us missionaries headed over there and cleaned her house...I thought I was tired and sweaty after the food bank...not even close to how I felt after cleaning her house. I think Hna Robles and I gained some good muscles in our arms washing walls. That night we headed to a set appt. with a  former investigator and we taught the mom (Gema) the dad (Fernando) and their 14 year old daughter (Barbara). We retaught the restoration and committed all of them to read and to pray. We hope and feel that they are ready now to make that change in their lives and be baptized. 

Thursday was planning of course and that was fun!! We had lunch with Maria and she made the MOST amazing food ever. Like I wanted to keep eating and my stomach told me no...true story. After lunch we planned some more until our set lessons for the rest of the night. We headed over to our 6 o'clock and he wasn't there, so we decided to pass by the other potentials on the same street and neither of them were there either...Hermana Rolbes and I both felt there was someone we needed to talk to or teach on this street so we started walking and there was a family sitting outside their house so we stopped by and introduces ourselves and she let us in and we started teaching her the Restoration and at first it didn't seem like she was listening or interested, but then we started asking her questions and she told us how she had just been feeling like God doesn't hear her prayers anymore and isn't there and then she saw us and she wondered if we were going to come over and talk to her and then we did and how she needs help feeling that love again from God. We bore testimony that God does love her and hears her prayers and wants her to be happy. It was a really cool experience, and it is so true about the Lord putting people in your path to talk to at certain instances. We then had a lesson with Ramon and taught him the importance of prayer and scripture study and how they are commandments of God. The lesson was real simple but it was powerful. We then recommitted him to a baptismal date!! He chose Nov 17! We are hoping to move this date up, but it was a date that he wanted. After that lesson we ran over to Manuel and Teresa's and we had Obispo and Hermana Carranza came with us to that lesson to help teach and answer some of their questions. We taught about the plan of salvation for half the time because the rest of the time Obispo was testifying of the gospel and how certain little things don't matter to our salvation and we feel that this lesson could have been a turning point. Manuel did tell us that he has been praying to know if this church is true but that God isn't answering his prayers, and we told him that we must do our part too. It is a two way street from God to us. God will always do his part, but we must do our part to show our faith and our desire to know whats right. 

Friday was a busy, long, awesome day! We got up early had headed to Zone Conference!!! We had a member of the Seventy (Elder Schiwitzer and his wife) come and that was awesome. We all recited D&C 4 and then heard from President and Sister Wilson, and then Elder and Sister Schiwitzer. The conference was about 4 hours long, but it was filled with so many inspiring words. The main thing that I took out of the conference was related to D&C 4:2 "Therefore, oh ye that embark on the service of God, see that you serve him with all your heart, might, mind, and strength..." We as missionaries must serve God with all we have, serving him with our heart means loving all those we come in contact with and are teaching. Love them so much that we are willing to be by their side and help them through this change of life. Serving him with our mind means, being pure and constantly repenting an becoming better. Serving him with our might means, begin diligent with our work, begin exactly obedient, and finding new people to talk to and teach at every opportunity. And serving him with strength means, leaning on the Savior and his grace. Staying strong and not giving up. We have a fight to win and we must not give up! So yeah, that is pretty much what I learned :) We then headed home and got ready for the SWAP MEET! It was really awesome!! It is just like a farmers market, but hispanic. We set up our booth around 4, and It was slow for the first hour or so, but about 6 o'clock there were a lot of people walking the swap meet. We roughly talked to about 200 people, gave out that many or more pass along cards, and gave out 15 or so Books of Mormon. We got to see current investigators, formers, and some potentials that we have knocked into before, so that was really cool. I loved just having people see us and see who we were. By the end of the night we were covered in dirt, sunburned and tired. But it was an awesome experience. 

Saturday we stopped by Hermana Duran's and read with her and then she fed us really good lunch. After that we headed over to the "piñata" family who make piñatas and we talked to her for a long time and got to know her some more and we figured out that she used to have the missionaries stop by and she didn't know that we were mormon as well! She was really surprised but happy at the same time. When we first walked up she was happy to see us and talk to her. She told us last week that she wanted us to come back and tell her about how our party went with the piñata! WE then had correlation and then headed to a ward party. The food was really good and we got to talk with a lot of members in the ward!! We then headed to our set appt. with a guy and his family. It is a young guy, Fabian, his wife, Olga who is pregnant and due today, and their little girl. We found him last week on exchanges and he agreed to have a return appt. We went back on tonight and he let us right in. The beginning of the lesson was kind of slow and shaky, but as we continued to teach and testify the Lord helped us gain more confidence in teaching the lesson. At the end of the lesson we invited him to be baptized and he said CLARO!! (which means YES) and he said that if he reads and comes to church and finds that this church is true he would be baptized. It was such an awesome experience. He had no feelings against being baptized and his wife didn't resist either!

Sunday was good as always. We headed to church, unfortunately none of our investigators came to church- this is something that we are going to work really hard on and pray for. We NEED our investigators to come to church...it is essential to begin baptized. We then and a meeting with all the Hermanas' in this area to learn how to better work with the ward and who we can get them pumped to to missionary work. Never before my mission did I think the ward was THAT essential...but it is! It is a huge part of keeping investigators and new members feeling loved! We then headed out and contacted and no one was answering their doors, so we decided to head to Prudencio's and check on how he is doing. He was home!! So that was good! We taught him and his wife the restoration, and invited both of them to be baptized, his wife said no, but Prudencio said yes, but he first must read and come to church! But he still said yes!! It it such a great feeling when those we teach accept the invitation to follow our Savior Jesus Christ and be baptized but someone who holds the authority of God. 

Well, I always try and make emails short, but as you can see that never happens.. haha. I hope you are all doing well. I love and miss each one of you!!

And we will talk next week!!

OH! And transfers are next week already..CRAZY right! These last 6 weeks flew by! Hopefulyl Hna Robles and I will stay together! :) I love begin with her!

Love, Hermana Aase

prayer list- Prudencio, Leticia, Manuel, Manuel and Teresa, Connie, Laura, Fabian and Olga, Gema Fernando and Barbara, Marcella and Ramon.