Tuesday, May 6, 2014

April 7, 2014 - I'm Trying to Be Like Jesus

This week was quizás the most ¨un¨usual week as far as working goes.
As we did weekly planning last week, we realized that we seriously did not have ONE normal day in our área all week. I am exhausted. boy that seems to be coming out of my mouth qute a lot lately. I honestly have felt a little like chicken with my head cut off all week. Running from one thing to the next making sure everything and everyone is in their place. 

It went a little something like this: 
Monday: P-day
Tuesday: Consejo, and then the very first ¨Hermanas Meeting¨ in the mission
Wednesday: Hermanas Meeting continued then an emergency leadership meeting to plan zone meeting
Thursday: Weekly planning 
Friday: Zone meeting 
Saturday: Rebroadcast of the Womans Conference, Conference
Sunday: Conference and then transfer calls

The Hermanas Meeting was interesting. It was so fun to be able to see ALL of the hermanas that are now in the mission. I got to be reunited with all of my comps and swap stories and hear about evreything everyone´s been doing. I got a package of letters from Familia Sesma. Pictures and letters. I love them. THey´re doing SO well. Working hard in their callings, and Viviana told me ¨Mauricio and I have BIG PLANS for this ward family. We are working hard to bring people back and keep the missionaries busy.¨They are GOLDEN. They are finishing the arrangements on adopting a little boy. Elias, they´re going to name him. And then they are moving to Mar Del Plata, and planning to be sealed as a family in December in Buenos Aires! 

You can imagine that the regular proselyting work suffered a little bit.... But honestly it was a week FULL of spiritual growth and revelation.Lots of changes in the mission, and we´re really cracking down on making the most of our time. I will stay here in Dorrego for one more transfer with Hermana Enos, and we are STOKED about that! This is a really hard area....but there is still so much work for us to do! 

We have been insanely busy with intercambios with the hermanas, planning meetings, and just keeping everything put together. Both of our Zone Leaders finished their missions yesterday, and our District Leader and his comp got emergency transfered out last week.....and so as you can imagine... a lot of those ¨extras¨ rested on us for the week. I have such a great appreciation for the organization of the mission and how each of us has a part in making plans and working with the investigators, members and missionaries in our areas.
Hermana Enos and I had the chance to do our Zone Meeting, and share about what Hermana Ávila had talked to us about in Consejo. We focused on ¨Who we are.¨ and what our part is in helping others in this work. We felt inspired to talk about the Atonement. We teach the doctrine to others, and we know that it is so vital as part of their conversion... but something that we often overlook is that WE, the missionaries, have to apply the atonement of Jesus Christ into how we do this work. We shared a part from the talk by Elder Holland ¨The Atonement and Missionary Work¨. It was an awesome meeting, and the spirit was super strong. We can´t do this work without the vital strength that WE get from our Savior´s great sacrifice. Although we will never comprehend completely the significance of this great act, we can rely on him and draw from the strength and healing that he, as a result of already having gone through it, knows perfectly that we need.

Investigators: 
*Mauricio & Ivana: We had an AMAZING noche de hogar with them, we watched los Testamentos. everyone was in tears, and Mauricio bore his testimony of Jesus Christ.
They will be getting married on April 25 :) 
*Sofia y Camila: They´re the granddaughters of a member in the ward. She´s super old and so is Menos Activa. We went to visit her, and her granddaugters wanted to listen to us. Their dad is also a member, but the first lesson, they didn´t even know who Jesus Christ was.....
We´ve been working with them a lot, and they are just the smartest girls (9 and 12 years) and they are so full of LOVE. THey just soak everything up like little sponges, and I´m loving working with primary age kids again. You know me, songs and games and object lessons are right in my comfort zone. 
I´m excited to be able to work in this area agian. 3rd transfers in an area are always a stretch. There´s an effort that has to be made to ¨find new ground¨ and work hard and figure out what the Lord still needs me here to do.

Conference was INCREDIBLE. I swear it goes SO much faster as a misisonary. I just couldn´t get enough of it. There were a few talks that we missed due to technical glitches... but I can´t wait until they come out online so that I can read them all again.  
I´ve had a personal goal lately of studying more of Christ´s life. What he did, the way he worked, the attributes he so perfectly exemplified, and mostly just WHO HE IS. for me and for all of us.
I´ve made a conscious effort lately to strive to focus on taking those divine attributes and applying them to myself. Something that stood out a lot to me during conference was how many times they talked about Love. Real, pure, Christlike love. Charity. And the way that it transends into every other aspect of our lives. Love is a powerful tool, and the greatest of all motivations. I´ve learned that many times over in missionary work and in my constant quest to strive to be better and to become what the Lord wants me to become. Love is a driving force that inspires, lifts, heals and encourages. Christ loved perfectly and without limit. That was fully expressed through his infinite atonement. The ultimate expression of his unquestionable love for His father and for each of us.

I went into conference with several questions/preocupaciones that I´d had. And it was amazing to me to see how I recieved so many specific answers and guidance.  I know that the speakers were inspired as to what they talked about. I know that each of them is a called representative of the Lord to tell us what it is he wants us to know. I love President Monson´s loving firmness. The way his strength and leadership radiates even from a tiny television halfway across the world. I loved President Packer´s humble testimony. His surefire conviction of the Savior. And his loving ¨closing words¨, assuring us that he has faith and hope in what is to come. 

I am so grateful to be a member of this, Christ´s church. Every day I have to remind myself that it is real life that I´m here in Argentina. Serving a mission. and that I have been called to be a representative during this time. It´s an incredible responsibility, and an even greater blessing. I hope you all were able to feel as I did this past weekend the reality of God´s love for each of us. The incredible blessing that it is to be part of the Resotred church, and to know that our family is forever. To know that Christ lives and is still actively involved in the workings of the gospel. I love him, and every day I´m more grateful for the incredible being he is, all that he did, and for the perfect example he is. I appreciate him more and more as I try my best each day to follow his example and walk in his footsteps.
I love you all.
I hope you have a great week! 
xoxoxo Your Hermana C

No comments:

Post a Comment