Post #50

January 14 2013

Good morning!

I hope that everyone has had a good week. I'm sure it's been pretty cold everywhere. It has been FREEZING HERE. So cold. And actually freezing. Like below freezing. haha. We don't pay attention much to degrees or anything (mostly because we don't really have access to that... ) but that is what everyone has been telling us. And in the mornings our car is covered in ice. I never really thought I would come to AZ and be so cold. But I'm grateful to at least have a car right now :] And I think also wearing a skirt all the time is a factor. It makes it colder than where you're wearing jeans!

Sister Valladares and I have had a good week. We had a mission-wide fast last week for the health of the mission and finding the elect. Both of which were perfect... because they are both things I've been having problems with! I got sick again! Sister Valladares was like really? Are you sure it's not in your mind? haha but I got a cough. Being sick on the mission is the worst because you want to work hard and you don't want to bring your companion down. And you super over analyze everything. Like is God okay that I'm taking a break right now? Should I push myself harder. It's good though to analyze where you are though. Sister Valladares and I have also really been trying to figure out how to find the elect in this area. I don't even know how to describe this area... there are so many people. SO many people. But from what I can see... there are tons of former investigators and not a ton of baptisms. It's not uncommon in this area to find 15 new investigators a week. But then they don't progress and we waste a lot of time trying to contact people that aren't really interested. I think we need to change our ways of finding. We both want to help this area so much. We are praying and fasting to know how we are supposed to find the prepared in this area--because I know that they are there. The family mission plan is a tool president has given us to work with the members better and assist them in their missionary efforts. It hasn't been used a ton in this ward so we have done it a couple times this week and have appointments set up with families for the upcoming week. And we are also trying to work better with the ward council. This ward didn't have a ward mission plan last year... so we are talking to the ward mission leader and the bishop to make it happen. Liahona 4th is a huge ward with huge potential. We should be baptizing every weekend. So that is the goal and we're working to make it happen.

One of our progressing investigators, Morena is doing awesome. We've asked her multiple times to be baptized with a particular date but she always says... can't I pick it? or I want to pray more about it. So we've kind of backed off a little bit, because we don't want to push her away. But we know she is so ready. At the very beginning of our lesson yesterday she said (with out us saying anything) I am going to get baptized either January 26th or February 2nd. So she is praying tonight and we'll set the date tomorrow. It's great working with her.

The less active family that we are working with, The Rascons, is such a good family. The kids are great... but the parents just don't quite get it. They just want us to come and teach their kids. And we are happy to be there and help their family, but it's the parents responsibility to teach their kids! We are planning to share D&C 68:28 with them tonight and be quite bold... because they aren't really getting it any other way. The husband sent his wife with the kids to church... but still hasn't come himself. They just want us to teach their kids so they can get baptized... but if the parents don't get involved the kids won't be able to keep the covenants they are making. I'm learning to be more bold... while still being loving. Because I get afraid of offending people. But I know I need to be more bold.

Towards the beginning of the week I lost my planner! I was like devastated. It was the first time that it had happened to me. A missionary's planner is like their life. EVERYTHING is written in their. So we backtracked our steps and tried to find it with no luck :[ Luckily I had been obedient the night before and had updated all of the potential investigators in the area book so I didn't really lose any information. But it was still a pain. I need to be more responsible and not lose things!

We had interviews with President Ellsworth last Wednesday. I love interviews. I know that they are super taxing on him (can you imagine over 200 missionaries and dealing with all their problems? haha plus ALL their investigators??) but I always feel so inspired coming out of them. We read Moses 1 together talking about our divine potential and how we are sons and daughters of God. It's a great chapter.

I'm so happy with Sister Valladares. She makes me want to be better. I've been a little sick this week so that has been hard. But she's been patient with me. I'm so far from perfect, but I hope I can just help this area and help her. This transfer is going by fast--even though we are full field and it is a 7 week transfer. It's going by fast. But we are finding new people and I'm learning so much.

So fun to hear from everyone and hear how they are doing. I love you all. I hope you all have a great week!

Love,

Hermana Larson