Being Happy!

Wed Jan 27, 2010

OK so this week wasn´t quite of an adventure as the last two, but you know the work is great and is always exciting. the sisters from santa elena came yesterday to do a choque de fuerza with us and the sister i worked with, hermana peterson was like um i want to stay in santa elena my whole mission. and i was like why? and she said i hate knocking! haha in santa elena they never have to knock doors because everyone just listens. so the struggle for them is to find who truly is interested, the struggle here is to find people who will listen and then who won't run away the second time and yell no hay nadie when you knock. you know how in america people yell no one´s here like as a joke? people actually do that here and i dont know like expect you to believe it or something. The other day my comp and i believed it was i hate missionaries day. People that we thought were super good strong investigators would see us coming, run inside and then wouldnt answer the door when we knocked. Its so sad. So we just drop them. I hope they decide to listen again someday. Also its so interesting to see the different ways that satan works. like with many many people its the all churhces lead to god i love everything peace, happiness everyone is accepted, blah blah. and im like actually no, God established one true church, and with HIs true authority is the only way to return back to Him. Dont worry i say it quite nicely, and very respectfully. But i make sure people know my testimony. Then there are other extremes where people just cant believe that God has a body because a body has cells. And then you try to explain, share scrpitures, pray and they just wont let you. they just yell over you until you say ok sorry we are going to leave now and then they say good i was realy hungry anyway, yeah leave. I have had times where we literally have to walk away because people just say cruel terrible things about the prophet, or my country, or my beliefs. I would rather not get worked up about these people and lose the Spirit. But it really just hurts my heart.
This morning we went and rented bikes and rode along the river with the other sisters. it was so beautiful! haha i love argentina we didnt have to leave anything for a deposit and when they didnt have four bikes they like borrowed one from a neighbor. it was hilarious. i got hooked up with a really really nice bike, and sister redfern got really shady no breaks [or brakes?] bike. it was so fun though, we saw huge pigs, a little beaver rat thing, goats, and lots of chickens. i did trade bikes with sister redfern at the end though so she could have a good nice ride up back to the rental place.
Lately i have been growing a lot of love for the people here, there are so many great people. the other day we were knocking and hermana bohning used someones bathroom and i just played with the kids and like was cutting hearts and mickey mouses of the newpapers with them. it was so fun!! i just love being happy. Another girl, Micaela is 10 and she just got baptized and she loves us so much. like i know we were sent here to be examples to her. she invites her friend to church and we ust started teaching her. I LOVE HER SO MUCH. like she is the sweetest nicest thing ever. agh.
we also started teaching this other family with 12 kids we all went in and many of them were there and they all listened really well and had good quiestions and said they wanted to know that joseph smith was a prophet and that he saw god and jesus and the mom offered the last prayer and it was beautiful and then they were like yeah we´re members. i was like woah! seriously! they havent gone for ten years and they joined 13 ago the last time there were sisters in la paz. I really feel we were sent here to help them feel again the truth of the gospel and the necesity of repentance and to remain faithful in the chruch. But they were this amazing family! all the kids are grown and they are just so wonderful! i feel so happy and grateful right now for the mission and this wonderful blessing i have to be able to meet all of these people! haha sorry that was cheesy but it really is just so true. I know that the person receiving the most blessings from me being here is me, no doubt about it.
The other day in district meeting we had a taller [?] about the book of mormon. we all bore our testimonies and the spirit was so strong. I KNOW without a doubt this book is true. It has blessed me in so many ways now that i have taken the time to actually read it. I'll be honest i never really read it or truly understood it or its importance or really felt in my heart the truth from the spirit until just recently in my mission. [She said something similar when she was a freshman in college and read it 30 minutes a day for her book of mormon class =)] I love this book with all my heart. I know it was written for me. I know that because we have it in these days it means that the true LIVING church of God is on the earth again. I know that Jesus Christ is my Saviour and my testimony of that has been incredibly influenced because of the book of mormon. Will you all prayerfully read the book of mormon every day to allow the spirit to testify to you of its truthfulness? i testify to you that you will feel in your hearts and in your minds that it is indeed true, that God lives, and that we are His children, and because of Christ we have the hope to return to Him Someday. I love you all and I love my Saviour and my Heavenly Father.

[and from her email to me re Tom and me]:

"I know you both were bomb rocking missionaries and sometimes that keeps me going. rad, love you!"