HAPPY EASER

 April 21, 2014

Happy Easer Familia! Or as they say here....Feliz Pascua! :)

I hope your day was great yesterday and you had a wonderful day reflecting and celebrating the wondrous news..."That he is risen!"

I actually had a really good Easter this year. It meant a lot more to me this year than any other year. All week during studies, I had been studying Easter, reading talks, the Easter story, and watching movies.  Easter morning we ate hard boiled eggs and Easter candy Hermana Sorensen's mom sent and members gave us (there is no hiding from candy). We watched "to The End was I born" and both cried. (I am becoming such a wimp!) 

Something I love about Hispanic culture is their traditions. They have such neat traditions, and I really have the desire to incorporate some of their traditions in my future family.

For example, for Easter, the whole week is a "semana santa" (Holy Week). They recognize all of the events leading up to Easter, Christ's resurrection. Like, the last supper, the Passover, his suffering in the garden of gethsemane, and his death. We have been trying to recognize each of the week. It dally put it into perspective the devastation of his death, and the glad and joyous news that he lived again.

Although they only eat fish...I don't think I could do that. The only sad thing is, the majority of people we saw this week, weren't doing anything, they just talked about what they did in their country. We went around this week showing everybody the new video "Because of him" and bore testimony of all we can do thanks to our Savior. We could tell it meant more for a lot of the people we saw.

This Sunday, during sacrament meeting, I was feeling very emotional about it all. The sacrament took on a whole new meaning to me yesterday, I took it with gratitude and joy. In the closing hymn, I sang the words "de la muerte somos salvos, del pecado nos libro" which means, "of death we are saved, of sin he freed us." Instantly I began to cry, which I thought as super weird. But after the final prayer a Hermano approached me and said he noticed. He was touched that the words of the song can bring tears, when the Holy Ghost touches our hearts. He began to get tears in his eyes and says it meant a lot to him. It meant a lot to me! 

We had a really good week this week. We saw a TON of people.

Noel is getting baptized this weekend! We were a bit nervous before because he has been so cynical and tentative about this whole new "God is my Father" thing. There is a family in our ward that is kind of "Debby Downers" and were telling us that they think he is not ready and the Elders should try teaching them. That was a big slap in the face for us. After a lot of prayer, we had another lesson with him to talk about his baptism.

We had an INCREDIBLE lesson with him. We asked him why he wanted to get baptized and he said that he has seen a lot of miracles in his life and he is ready to trust God and feels like he can admit he needs him. We ended our lesson with a kneeling prayer and waiting afterward. Noel cried. HE CRIED! That is huge. He has felt so lonely his whole life, and I think he is finally realizing that he isn't alone. He never is.

He is so ready for this. We taught him a few commandments last night, like the Word of Wisdom and Law of Chastity. In the past he would have questioned it all and not be willing to live them. But he took them graciously and said he'd be willing to obey God. It's so incredible. I think the most fulfilling part of missionary work is watching the change in others.

Tara is ready too! Her baptism is the next Saturday. We are planning hers too. She has had all of the lessons and loves it. She loves the gospel more and more.

Yesterday, I went on splits and went to the 16-17 yr. old Sunday school class to babysit, because they are such naughty kids to the teacher (and there are 3 investigators in that class!). They all were super reverent because I was there, but they all got super bored. Haha punks.

We are trying to find new investigators and track down old ones right now. We have some really good investigators but we will need news ones once they get baptized! Sadly, a few of our investigators fell of the map. Sometimes we just can’t get a hold of them, or sometimes they just get scared and don't want to commit. It breaks my heart when they don't see how much they need this gospel. But we are excited to find new fun people!

I had quite a few embarrassing moments this week. Funny ones. I find that sometimes things are less embarrassing on your mission because, well you are a missionary. We just are weird as it is.

This week, we were leaving a lesson and as we walked outside, we started running for the car because we were late, and I had to go to the bathroom. Well, it was super embarrassing because the YW leader of the ward saw us and started honking. We thought it was some creep so we ran faster. She finally caught up to us and was laughing so hard because we looked so funny running in skirts.

Then leaving the same house a few days later, me and Hermana Sorensen were walking back to our car. Well, sometimes I get awkward wedgies in lessons. So I just fixed it up right there. The next thing I know I hear a man cracking up behind me. I look around to see a car full of Hispanic men laughing because they just saw me. So moral of the story is....if you have to itch your bum, make sure there are no creepy Hispanic men watching. We had a good laugh about that one.

I love being a missionary. Some people just treat us like royalty when we come over. We just get the special treatment. Most of the members here are converts, majority of them. They all have a special place in their hearts for the missionaries, those angels that shared with them the gospel. I love being that angel. It makes me grateful for those that taught me the gospel...my missionaries: Parents, teachers, YW leaders, etc.

I hope that you are all well, and not dying of heat yet in Arizona. I love springtime weather.

Happy birthday Jordan! You are getting do old, is it weird? :) Best of luck to you in the MCAT, I will be praying for you. Did you ever get your package?

How fun that you are putting grass down and everything, and clean windows? I am going to come home to an entirely different home! And family...Dallin and Lizzie are growing up way too fast. Haha 

Thank you so much, Mom, for the package! I loved all the clothes. Although it's a little depressing to me that the size I was before my mission BARELY fits me now. But I got tons of compliments on the skirt and dresses. Wore them all this weekend. You're getting so good at picking out things! :)

Thank you all for the Love and Support, it means a lot to me. So many people ask the missionaries to pray for them. I love being able to do it, because I know how much I can feel YOUR prayers. Thank you so much.

Con mucho amor,

Hermana Spencer

1. We went to the zoo last Monday and loved it! This is with the cute panda

2. Riding the metro with Tara and her cousin Jocelyn

3. Loving the springtime!

It's Spring!

Hola Familia!

 What a week it has been. Time just is flying by.

Virginia's finally warming up! We had a super long winter, and a lot of snow. But I am LOVING the springtime. All of the trees are blossoming and there are daffodils on the side of all the roads. I love it!  It just makes us want to go out and share the gospel! Although, it is
surprisingly hot. It kind of went straight from winter cold to summer heat. That makes us nervous for this summer.

We saw a ton of miracles this week. I think the biggest miracle this week was Tara. We have been working with her for a long time, but it's been rough with her family situation. She's been a little iffy about the church in the past because she didn't want to cause problems with
her dad.

Well we went to go see her this week and no woman was home, so we couldn't go inside. We sat on the porch outside and chatted with her. She was so excited to see us! She had, had a dream the night before. She was trying to turn this list switch on, but it wouldn't turn on.
She decided to pray and ask Heavenly Father to help her turn it on. Instantly, when she tried again, the light came on. She said that she had this feeling come over her that she has never felt before, and she knew that her Heavenly Father was there, and this was the right church
and path.

This week Tara has expressed her heartache with some family problems, which was a little sad for us because Tara is never not smiling. But she began to cry when she talked about the gospel. She said that there was always something missing. She didn't know what, but there was
something she needed. And as she has made these steps in the gospel, she feels complete. And she feels like she has a relationship with her Father in heaven. :)

My testimony grew this week. I think I have always known the gospel is true. I always knew that it was right, but when I see somebody gain a testimony, and come to know that it is true, I see a change I them, a light that just gets brighter. And that just reassures me of the truthfulness of my message, as a missionary.

Noel is progressing well, too! He is kind of still a punk and questions just about everything we say but there is a change in him too. He knows it's true. Our lessons are getting better and better with him. I love working with youth, because I feel like I can connect with them. Noel is preparing for baptism and is understanding the importance of it more and more. We have fun lessons with him.

Our district is really trying to step up the game. It's incredible to see the ward, especially the leaders pushing us, and encouraging us! They really want to see baptisms and success, so they are doing all they can to see the work hasten. Yesterday, bishop went around church
and basically chastened the leaders for not going out with the missionaries when they can. We get a lot of youth to come out with us, but adults often are too busy. It makes us want to work harder!

I got this terrible cold (again! I feel like I'm always sick....) at the beginning of this week and I still have it. It was super hard at the beginning because I'd have to take naps in the afternoon in order to have a bit of juice left to be a missionary. Hermana Sorensen got a ton of paperwork done this week while I napped. But I learned something this week about sacrifice. It was super hard, but I forced myself to get up and work during the most important hours of the day.
And although I was sick, uncomfortable, miserable, and I had an excuse to stay in, I noticed that when I went out, we were blessed. We had the BEST lessons when I was working although sick. I know The Lord blesses us when we forget about ourselves and get to work.

Our mission had a theme for each quarter as we set goals for our areas. This first quarter was "step out of be boat" meaning, we can walk on water but we have to take the first step out of the boat! We just started our new quarter "step onto the mount" meaning the mount that Abraham went obediently to sacrifice his son Isaac. It is so hard to sacrifice, that is what I am learning. Abraham had a hard time giving his only son, but he wanted to show God he loved him more. So as a mission we are asking, "What are we willing to sacrifice?" Sometimes, it's little. But, when we give up something we love, and put it in hands of The Lord, he will provide. In the end, Abraham was provided with a ram as sacrifice, but he knew all along that The Lord would provide. His faith just needed to be tested.

Today we are going to Washington, D.C. With Tara and her cousin Jocelyn. We are going to the Zoo and super excited. DC is covered in the cherry blossoms right now and we don't want to miss it. Spring break started today, so everything is going to be super busy. But we are happy everybody will be home this week to teach :)

I can’t believe how fast time is flying. It made me think of the conference talk last week. Just like Olympians only have 4 minutes as their moment to shine, after much performance, our life is so short in the perspective of eternity! I only have less than 7 months of my mission. It is flying by. It just makes me think of what can happen in a short amount of time, what I can do. What differences I can make.

I love you all! Thank you for the love and support. I love hearing from you, it's so motivating :)

Con amor,

Hermana Spencer

Snow, Snow and More Snow

March 3, 2014

Today is snowing like crazy, which is a big bummer because it's P-day and we can't go grocery shopping. We are lucky our apartment complex has computers we can use so we don't have to wait until tomorrow to email.

We have had yet another crazy week! As always.

At the beginning of the week, we had a really good lesson with Tara, our 16 year old. We helped her set up her new bunk bed and taught a lesson at the same time :) She is so great. She wanted us to come back and make us dinner.

Well Wednesday was crazy. Every Wednesday, we have lunch at our bishop's house. They are Peruvian, and they make the BEST food. But Peruvian food is so filling, and so much. We normally don't eat dinner Wednesday nights because we are so full.

Well, we went to see Yamilet, our investigator and her son, Kevin who is a recent convert.  We had a lesson with Kevin, because apparently he's been having anger issues, and needed a talk. Afterwards, Yamilet came out with an entire plate of food. AH! Luckily it was mostly fruit, but still lots of food.

Right after Yamilet, we went to see Hermana Garay, who is our investigator too. She made us each a bagel and a giant class of Abuelita, Latino Hot Chocolate.

After visiting her, we went to see Tara and she had prepared us a dinner too. A giant plate of pasta, pears, and chocolate cake. Needless to say, we went home that night with stomach aches and giant bellies!

We had another lesson with Tara the next day, and we talked about the story of Esther and courage. We read from the verse Esther 4:14 "who knoweth whether thou art come to thekingdom for such a time as this?" We testified that this is YOUR time. There is a reason we are all here on the earth, at this time. We have a purpose. And by our small decisions, we can affect nations of people. That night, Tara committed to a baptismal date of the 22nd!! :)

We are excited for her, but we warned her that Satan will try and take her off course. We told her to read the scriptures or say prayers whenever she feels discouraged.

Last night, when we got home, Tara called us crying. She said she was having a few family problems. She was at her dad's and forgot her scriptures. She asked us to read her the book of Mormon over the phone to help her feel better. After we finished a chapter she said "Could you may be read a little bit more?"

We were so touched that she called us, and she knows she can find peace in the gospel and through reading the scriptures. It was a good learning experience for me.

Sadly, Sara and Flor left for Peru this week. We didn't get a chance to say goodbye to them, but they sent us messages on Facebook to say thanks and goodbyes. Sara bore testimony that she knows she came to the US at this time to learn of the church. We are going to start teaching them skype lessons, we are excited! :) We also are going to teach a few other lds investigators in Honduras over Skype too.

Did I mention we get Ipads this week!?!? Finally. We have a running joke in our mission about us never actually getting Ipads because they keep pushing back the dates. But, for sure this Thursday.

Friday was my mission half-way mark. CAN YOU BELIEVE THAT?!?! 9 months already!? I still feel brand new.

I had a little miracle this week. I served with a few Elders in Sudley that had served here in Little River. Apparently there was this infamous Hermana in this area, that hated Sister missionaries. (Literally, everybody knows her at "Crazy Maria") She only let Eder’s in her home, but unfortunately there is no man in the house so the Eder’s aren't supposed to go in. President Riggs has been trying to send sisters over there for years, but she hasn't liked any of them.

I worked with one Elder that mentioned that she might like me. So at a fireside, he introduced me and my companion to her. She was very blunt in saying "I don't want you at my house" but she promised the Elders that if me or my companion ever got sent to Little River, she would let us in and give us a chance.

When I got sent here, I thought of her, but was way to chicken to try it out. She is a very blunt lady. I had seen her a few times at church and would smile at her, but never approach her.

Last Sunday, I was helping out in Primary (my piano skills are continually being abused). She was in there. At the end, she approached me and asked me if I was the Hermana that the Elders introduced to her. I thought she would have forgotten!!

She told me that, she has a small piece of paper on her fridge with my name, and my old companion's name. She had no idea, who put it there, or how it got there. But she has had my name on her fridge for months. We talked and had a good chat. I asked her when we could come see her, and she told me her schedule, but made me pinky promise to not tell anybody. She isn't somebody to like help or visitors.

This Saturday, we felt like we should take her up on her offer and go visit her. Apparently she had an operation 2 days ago and was in the need of help, but she refuses to call anybody. We left her with a spiritual message and promised to come back the next day with Ice Cream.

Last night, we went with Ice Cream and we were able to clean her kitchen, dishes and living room because she can barely even walk. She has 4 kids, so we were there entertaining them and chatting with her. I LOVE her. I was so humbled by the experience. I know that I was sent to this area at this time for a reason. I learned so much from her. Here I was thinking that there is no way she would remember me, or let me in her front door. I was too chicken to go try. But the Lord is merciful, and even when I am lacking in courage and Faith, he sends another way. I am so grateful we were able to go help her and get to know her. We love her and we are so excited to continue working with her.

I know that we are all here at this time for a reason. We are in the hastening of the work for a reason. The Lord needed US. He needed YOU! There is a purpose you were born to be here at this time. You have a divine purpose.

I love this work, I am grateful for the Love of our Heavenly Father. I love being his missionary and his great messenger.

I love being a part of this hastening!!

I love you all,

Hermana Spencer

Lessons I Have Learned

March 10, 2014

Dear Familia,

This has been another crazy and spiritual week!

 I am officially half-way through my mission and I have been pondering of the past, and setting goals for the future. Something I have learned is the importance of setting long-term goals and short-term goals to accomplish them.

 We have been focusing our teaching a lot this week on the Book of Mormon. We had zone conference last week and President Riggs expressed his concern about not using the scriptures enough, personally and in lessons. We need to know the scriptures. Read them, understand them, and love them. The Book of Mormon is a conversion tool on its own. We literally have had investigators be completely converted and know that the church is true by just reading the book alone.

 We also have been focusing on authority and prophets. Throughout my entire mission, that has been the hardest and easiest thing to explain. People ask us ALL the time "Why do I need to be baptized again?" or "My pastor has authority too, what makes your church different?"

Through the restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, we literally have the exact same authority that Jesus Christ gave to his 12 apostles.

 We have the priesthood and authority on the earth again, after it was lost for many years. All priesthood holders can trace their priesthood lineage back to our Savior, Jesus Christ, himself. That is something to rejoice about! We have the restored gospel on the earth!

We have had to explain latter-day prophets many times this week, and latter-day revelation/commandments. We have a living day prophet that receives revelation, directly from our Heavenly Father, for us in our day. That is miraculous. And yet, many of us still find excuses or look for ways to not follow his great counsel.

We spent a lot of time working with the member, Maria, again. She so lonely, but won't admit it. She had us come over and help her put together posters for primary. She ended up dragging us to Staples, Subway and then back for hamburgers and her house. She just loves the company. We are learning a lot from her, she is great :)

 So the big news is...We have IPad’s!!!!!

Thursday we got training and received IPad’s. They are so fun! We love them. We literally have nothing on them, except proselyting things, but they make the work a lot easier.

 All of our records are going to be used through technology now. Our area books and everything are through our IPad’s. I love the Gospel Library app, so we don't have to lug around sets of scriptures and DVD's. The only hold up is that our apartment doesn't have internet, so we can only use a few things when at home.

 This Saturday, we finally had MUNDIAL MORMON! It was a mission-wide event that was solely planned by my district. Me and Hermana Sorensen were in charge of the guided tours of the church and a few other things. We were at the church setting up the night before, and we were at the church for 13 hours on Saturday. We were so dead tired.

A LOT of people showed up to play soccer, which was awesome! We did have a few people complain and get in arguments, but nothing terrible. Sadly, it was like pulling teeth trying to get people to go do the tours. President Riggs showed up to see if the event was being productive and luckily was able to see one of the tours.

 The Talent show at the end was hilarious. We had a few people who refused to get off the stage and we had to literally close the curtain on them. I proposed the idea of using cups to make a beat to a song, and we ended up getting all the missionaries involved. It was super fun!

 Liz, is on date for baptism! She has been investigating for over 5 years, and has been on date many times. She is losing hope in actually being baptized, but we see it for her! Her only hold up has been getting to church. We don't want her to fall off the map after her baptism, so we made her a deal. She has to come 3 weeks in a row before her baptism. This week she almost didn't come, but she ended up coming for a half-hour in the foyer and leaving. Gah!  We have so much faith and hope in her though. We see her getting baptized very soon.

 Tara, is on date as well but we are nervous for her. Apparently, last minute, she moved out of her house and back in with her mom and dad (who are divorced?). Her dad does not like the idea of being baptized, at all,  but we are hoping for a miracle. She has such a sweet spirit and so ready for this step, we just have to get her there! :)

 Every Wednesday, we eat Peruvian food at our Bishop's house. This week, we had a nice big plate of Cow Heart. Yup "Corazon." It was actually pretty good! But it still grossed me out a bit when the Elders kept reminding us that it was pumping a few days before. Bleh!

I am officially on my 4th pair of boots as a missionary. I am not sure why I have the worst luck with boots! I have gotten cheap pairs, and nice expensive pairs. But they still seem to always find a different way to break on me. This week,  I had to go get a new pair of boots. Not my favorite way to spend money! But there is a running joke among missionaries, that how hard you worked is determined by how many shoes you have run through. Apparently I must be working oober hard. :) 

So many babies coming! I have gotten a few baby announcements in the mail from college friends, and 3 of my old roommates are getting married! So crazy. Being in the states on my mission, and having Facebook makes me still pretty connected with the world, which is both good and bad :)

 With the new technology, we know the work is hastening! D&C 88:73.

 I am jealous that you guys get to go on a  cruise soon! Sunny weather sounds fantastic right about now in cold Virginia :)

Also, I am convinced that Todd needs to date my cute friend Katie Bailey from BYU-Idaho. I have no idea how they would meet, but I am convinced it could happen :)

I am learning so much. The more I focus my actions outward, the closer I become to my Savior, and my Heavenly Father. That is why on the final days of his earthly ministry, the Savior gave us the new commandment to "Love one Another." Truly, by heeding his counsel and direction, we can become more like him.

 My long term goal is to be like God. To one day, return to his presence, have eternal Life and be like him.

I am willing to take every short-term goal, and every step to get there. I am far from my goal, but I know that is possible nonetheless. Our Heavenly Father has made it possible for each of us to get there!

 I love being a missionary! It brings so much satisfaction and joy to me! I hope that you are all doing well, and working hard in the vineyard as well. There are so many souls prepared for us to find them! :)

Con Amor,

Hermana Spencer

I Love to See the temple!

February 18, 2014

Hola Familia!

I could never say that I have not learned anything on my mission. I learn something new every day. Whether that means, I learn how to be a better person, teacher, or friend. Or even if that means I learn how to back out of a parking spot with snow behind it. I learn something daily.

In that case, I learned a lot in the past week!

I didn't get to email you all yesterday, because of the Holiday, but that was good news for me because we got to go to the temple instead. I LOVE THE TEMPLE. There is an unexplainable peace and reverence inside the walls of the Lord's holy home.

Yesterday, we had the unique opportunity to attend a short conference on the 7th floor of the temple. The senior couple that drove us found out about it and we were able to attend. It was remarkable! We were able to go to the special conference room that most people don't get to go to, and we had a few speakers talk about (in more detail than outside of the temple) the sacred temple ordinances. I learned so much.

ALSO I got to see the new temple video! (Finally!!!!) Not the new new one, but the new one. It was absolutely beautiful, I cried almost the entire time. I was so grateful to be able to attend the Temple yesterday.

It snowed a TON this week. Okay, not that much compared to New Hampshire, but all of Virginia was freaking out. It snowed a little more than a foot, which meant school was out....and we couldn't drive. We were stuck in the apartment all day Wednesday. I got a lot of cleaning done...although it didn't last past Thursday (Surprised dad?).

We have been working with two of our investigators, Sara and Liz. Sara got to the US about a month ago, and she is staying with her cousin Liz. Liz has been investigating for over 5 years now. She has such a strong desire to get baptized, but something always got in the way so she is losing hope. But since Sara met us, she has been reading the Book of Mormon and asking LOTS of questions. We are trying to help her get baptized before she leaves for Peru again....NEXT WEEK. We will need lots of prayers and miracles, but we have the faith!

Liz's sister is in the Hospital right now because of her extreme anorexia. It is really doing a toll on the entire family. But Liz has committed that she will be baptized when her sister is out, so she can come to her baptism. Soon!

We started teaching Noel, Rosemary's son, this week. The first lesson was chaotic and confusing. He has lots of questions and personal opinions. He had 2 sister missionaries, his mom, and Melissa (who came with us) all throwing answers at him. We prayed that the next lesson would be better. IT WAS! We had a great lesson with him last night. We read with him and promised him the blessing of the truth through the Holy Ghost. He wants to know the truth. We see a lot of potential in him.

Melissa keeps coming out with us. We love it! She loves working with us and bearing her testimony. She has grown so much since I met her, and even more since her baptism. Her understanding is increasing. We had a talk on modesty with her, and she looked like she was about to faint (haha) but then we brought over a pile of Sister missionary hand-me-downs in our apartment and she got excited.

On the way to one of our lessons, Melissa said to us in the car "You guys make me want to be a missionary" and since then, she is thinking about going on a mission!!!!!!!! Even if she doesn't go, the process of deciding and preparing is life-altering. I am so excited for her. She is literally a light to our entire Ward.

Yamilet is incredible. But she is so darn frustrating! She has a testimony, she knows it's true. She comes to church every Sunday, she reads the Book of Mormon, and she says her prayers. She lives and loves every commitment! But she says she still doesn't have the "desire" to be baptized. She asks us to pray for her to have this desire, and she is as well, but for some reason she just doesn't want it!

We took her to the temple visitor center on Sunday night with a family that is good friends with her. It was remarkable. We watched the video on the family and afterwards we sat in the room and talked. Yamilet never cries. She cried! The spirit was SO strong. We all bore testimony of eternal families and how the gospel blesses families. I was so grateful for that experience. We are hoping that the experience helped her with her "desire." We care about her so much.

This week, when we went to go see Yamilet, Hermana Sorensen pet a stray cat outside and it started following us. When Yamilet opened the door, the cat ran in. We spent the first part of the lesson laughing our heads off and trying to get the cat out of her apartment! The rest of the lesson the cat sat outside the door meowing.

Things are looking excellent here in Little River. We are still planning and prepping for our huge event, Mundial Mormon! We are all really excited, and stressed :)

My companion and I are learning a lot together. She is unlike any companion I have had so far. I am learning a lot from her. I hope she is learning from me!

Our mission theme for the quarter is "Step out of the Boat." Meaning, when Christ came to his apostles walking across the water, he invited Peter to join him. Peter did in fact walk on water. BUT, he had to take the first step of faith, but stepping over the edge of the Boat. Oftentimes, when we are on the boat all comfortable, it is really hard to make the step. We are unsure if we will actually going to be able to walk on water, if the miracle will actually happen. BUT, by taking the step we are exercising the faith that it will happen.

I encourage all of you to "Step out of the Boat" and exercise your faith. I promise that walking on water and other miracles are possible! They happen every day in the mission field!

Never forget the goodness of this gospel. There is a sweet goodness from being a part of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. I testify to that! Although life itself is hard, it is our reaction that determines our consequences. As Dieter F. Uchtdorf said "It is your reaction to adversity, not the adversity itself that determines how your life's story will develop"  

So....react well :)

I love you all! Thanks for everything.

Con amor,
Hermana Spencer

Dallin: Happy Birthday! I cannot believe how old you are getting! I still think of you as the cute little brother who was once shorter than me! I hope your Birthday was fantastic, and I hope that you are still charming all the ladies. As well as doing your fair share of mission prep! Keep it up. Love you! OH....congrats on regionals! I hope you had a blast :)

1.Me and the Carliles...love them!

2.Me and Hermana Sorensen in front of the Temple

3.Yamilet and us after we caught the cat!

February 10th, 2014

February 10, 2014

Hello Familia!

I hope that all is well with you all. This has been a slow week for me! Not bad slow, just felt like so much has happened. Busy busy!

 Looking back though before my mission, I LOVE being busy. Being busy is such a blessing. Yes I love the occasion lazy moments, of getting to relax. But I love looking back at my weeks and seeing all that was accomplished in such a short amount of time.

Just remember that business is good. Don't ever try to run faster than you have strength, but it is a blessing.

 Monday, we had zone sports. Because in our mission, everybody lives so close to each other, we get to have activities as zones and districts pretty often.

 Last Monday, we did dart gun wars. We literally had Pvc pipes and we would shoot darts by blowing through them. It was SO fun. But, in the midst of our games, my companion went to go "tag" an elder, and he ducked the wrong direction and she ended up punching him right in the face. As a result, he has an amazing scratch across his face, and my companion sprained her thumb!

 We thought her thumb was broken for a while, so we had to go to urgent care to check it out. Sadly it took us 4 hours in a doctor’s office to find out we just need to ice it and take Advil.

This week we also started planning out giant multi-ward activity called "Mundial Mormon" which is basically the Mormon World Cup. Our district came up with the idea for our ward and we decided to make it bigger and go mission wide. We are inviting EVERYBODY in our mission (well, Spanish speakers).

We are doing an all-day event where we have a little bit of Volleyball and then a giant soccer tournament. We are having a bracket and everything. At night we are doing a talent show and food. Not to mention, we are planning church tours, movies and games throughout the entire activity in the other rooms. We have a Hermana who is studying marketing, so we are trying to get the word out to everybody. We are so excited! And the English speakers are all really jealous... :)

This week was transfers. Me and Hermana Sorensen are staying in little River for another transfer. Last minute, our mission president called the entire mission to come to the transfer meeting for a whole-mission conference (which isn't very common).

He had seen the new movie "the Saratov Approach" earlier that week and got special permission to show it to all of us. It was such an emotional experience for us. I am not sure if you have had a chance to see it, but it is a must see. There were many lessons that I learned. It's about two missionaries in Russia that got kidnapped and held ransom. They had incredible faith and amazing examples.

It was really cool though, the day before we saw the movie, we were in a neighborhood we are always in. Me and my companion looked at each other and said that we needed to get back to our car. We are quite sure why still, but all we know is that we need to go back...and fast. The movie and the experience freaked my companion out a bit, but we had the senior couple across the street come over and give a blessing.

I honestly, felt at so much peace. I knew that I was safe. My patriarchal blessing, my setting apart blessing, and many blessings after that have promised me my safety on my mission. Obviously, as long as I am listening to the spirit. I have had so many moments in my mission where we have been guided to somewhere, OR away from somewhere. I feel at so much peace having the gift of the Holy Ghost and "Angels round about me."

 Saturday, we went to the Serrano's house (Melissa's family) for Pupusas. They are the most common food in El Salvador, and I am learning how to make them! But it was so fun. They were celebrating their oldest son's birthday, and they invited the missionaries on purpose because their family would be there that need the gospel. I LOVE getting member referrals. Going through the members is SO much more effective than our own efforts.

We also had a little girl stop us in the hallway yesterday to tell us she wants her friend to "join us." She was asking for advice on how to bring up the missionaries. It was so fun to give her the advice and tell her that we would pray for her missionary opportunity.

Melissa and her family both got their temple recommends on Sunday, so we are planning a trip to do baptisms for the dead. Melissa's mom looked like she was about to cry when we found out she was allowed to go in the ACTUAL temple. She's still waiting for her year mark to be sealed as a family, but they are so excited to go to baptisms.

We had an amazing lesson with Sara last night. I met Sara with Hermana Memmott a month ago, while helping her cousin paint. Sara was super cold to us at first, but over time has warmed up to us. She is reading the Book of Mormon right now and already is in 2 Nephi! At first she came to us with MANY questions and doubts, but after a few lessons about the Holy Ghost, she has changed. Last night she told us that she knows the book of Mormon is true, Joseph Smith was a prophet, and that this Church is the Church of Jesus Christ. Sadly, she leaves back for Peru in 2 WEEKS! So we talked about baptism with her and we are hoping to help her get baptized before she goes.

 Noel, Rosemary's son wants to get baptized too! Honestly, because of his mom's example and the other youth's example, he has had a change of heart and mind towards the church. I am so happy for Rosemary, since her baptism she has just blossomed!

 We are working with a teenage girl that just got baptized a month ago right now. We are working on teaching her family, but right now she is suffering from extreme depression. We are doing the best we can to help, but we can only do so much. We are trying to keep daily contact with her and keep her spirits high. She is such an incredible, and strong girl, I just wish she could see that! Or we could help her see what we see! Or more importantly, what her Heavenly Father sees.

 Dad mentioned something in his letter that I have been thinking about ALL week. The basics. Our investigators cannot progress or come unto Christ unless they are doing the basics. We have so many people so close to baptism, and commitment keeping, but they simply won't read the scriptures, or say their prayers or come to church! It's frustrating knowing how much this will bless their lives, but they simply won't act. When people act, they receive blessings and answers. It is incredible how simple the recipe is, but so difficult it is for us sometimes.

 Even when we are missionary, or a parent, bishop, or whatever we are. We have to continue doing the basics. Every day! That is part of Enduring to the End. We have to exercise our faith, and keep covenants we made.

 We are going to Washington DC today. We are going to tour some museums and to shoot part of a commercial for "Mundial Mormon"

It is cold outside though! Washington DC is a LOT better than New Hampshire. We have barely been hit by bad weather. It is cold, but we get little snow and it doesn't get below 30 degrees normally.

All in all, Things are good here. I really can't complain. Things are not easy, but things are possible. Honestly, my mission hasn't been extremely hard. Not because I don't get trials and it is not a test of my faith. But I know in every circumstance that the Lord is with me. And, the burdens don't seem so heavy, because of that. Also, we are seeing so many miraculous things, that the good outweighs the bad!

I love being a missionary. It is incredible. I love being a part of this work.

I love you all!

 Con mucho amor,

Hermana Spencer 

 

1. Me and my district

2. Nerf gun war-zone. So fun!

Exclamation Point!

January 27, 2014

Hola familia!

Well, I just wrote you a very length letter and then accidently hit the discard button. So here I go with take 2.....

We had a very eventful and productive week!

First things first, we had 2 amazing baptisms this weekend!

Rosemary, our investigator from Bolivia got baptized this weekend. She had only been taking the lessons for a little over a month, but her testimony is incredible. Rosemary had a double baptism with another investigator named Juan, who the other Hermanas were teaching.

Melissa, our other investigator who is 17, has been investigating for about 5 years now. She has had many people teaching her in the past. Her entire family recently got baptized, except her. A few weeks ago, she opened up to us and some of her concerns. We were able to teach and talk to her more and develop a relationship with her. She finally decided to take the step! Her baptism was beautiful though. She never looked more beautiful.

Saturday was a stressful day for us. We had a whole mission conference all morning, and then we had the baptisms that night. We had to be at the church early to fill the font and set things up.

Rosemary had to get her baptismal interview as well. President Burton, of the mission presidency had to give it, but wouldn't be back in town until an hour before her baptism. She was supposed to show up at 5:00 and came an half hour late and didn't get out of her interview until after the baptism was supposed to start.

Also, the member of the bishopric who was supposed to come give us the keys to the font came 15 minutes before the baptism. So we had to hurry and fill the font.

 Another Hermana sang a musical number in the first baptism, while I played the piano. (I am officially named "the Hermana that plays the piano"...again). But Melissa asked me to sing a musical number in her baptism.  It was funny though because me and the other Hermana ended up doing the same song....oops.

Our whole mission conference was awesome. We had S. Gifford Nielson of the seventy come speak to us. Yep....Exclamation point guy! The first thing he said when he walked in was "Exclamation point!" He was a very animated and enthusiastic speaker. It was great to learn from him. He told some great stories and talked about the hastening of the work, including member and missionary work. He also talked about Ordinances and their associated covenants.

President Riggs and Sister Riggs both spoke as well and it was fantastic. Something I learned there was "Never settle for mediocrity" We were not sent to this earth to achieve mediocrity, we were sent to the earth to achieve perfection.  

I also had interview with President Riggs this weekend. We had a great interview and I walked away with a lot of insight. He mentioned my confidence. He asked how I became so confident. I mentioned that my family moved a few times and I learned a lot from that, and also performing has helped. But he mentioned how my companion might struggle with confidence and in that case, I have to lead and support.

 Something else he said was "Hermana Spencer, you are never ever somebody that I have to worry about." That makes me so glad. I never wanted to be a burden to this work, I wanted to help. That was my goal, to be somebody he didn't have to worry about.

But, I realized I have a new goal now. I don't only want to be somebody that he "doesn't have to worry about" I want to be somebody that he "Doesn't know what he would do without"

I don't want to settle for mediocrity!

Virginia is getting colder. We had some pretty bad snow on Tuesday, so we were stuck in our apartment all day. Unfortunately, in the Spanish program, if you can't drive you are stuck. Our areas are just too big to walk!  Virginia is crazy about school, they cancelled school the entire week!

 I love how I am improving. Something I thought about this week is that my mission really hasn't been that hard. It HAS. But it hasn't.

I have had plenty of trials and difficult, discouraging moments. But the closer I get to my Savior and my loving Heavenly Father, the easier they seem. I look back and I don't even recognize the hard moments. All I see are the miracles. All the blessings I see on my mission have outweighed every hard moment.

 I love this work. I hit my 8 month mark this week. How crazy is that!? I am excited to continue working in this work of salvation.

Thank you all for the love and support. You are in my prayers, and your prayers are felt and appreciated :)

Con Mucho amor,

Hermana Spencer