Springfield VA

Hola! Here is a rundown of my week:

Tuesday- we had some good and some bad. The days when we don't have language study are harder for me. Also, since its pday I’m out of the habit of teaching in Spanish, so i was a bit frustrated at the end of the day. But also, we went to burke lake and sat on a dock for a few hours to write letters and it was beautiful and so calm and just great! We had 2 members from our ward take us out to ice cream as well.  We visited a less active as well and she has a little 2 year old girl and she was soooo cute. She started crying as soon as we walked out the door.  And then on Saturday we were standing outside and she was trying to push us into the apartment, but we had to leave for stake conference.

Wednesday- first time doing exchanges! I had no idea what exchanges were because no one ever told me anything. So we finished with district meeting and I saw a bunch of pillows in the back of a car and I asked Hna Wilcox and Hna McDonald if they were moving or something and they just gave me a weird look and said, "we’re doing exchanges". So I say, "I know". And then they realized that i had no idea what was happening and laughed at me for a little bit and then explained everything. Apparently it’s an overnight occurrence. My bad! But yeah, so I had to lead my area that day which was pretty hard, but good and fun and I learned a lot. The first 3 places that we tried to go, no one answered their doors, so we went to dinner. I have never eaten so much in my life. I really couldn't even eat until breakfast 2 days later. It was almost like there was an entire box of rice on my plate and then meat on a bone, which if you know me, I really struggled with. On top of that the kids in that house were going crazy and we couldn't calm them down enough to share a message, so we had to just leave. We visited another investigator and she prayed in front of us for the first time and it was amazing! She is really so great and she has been praying about a date for baptism, so we hope that is coming soon :) I MET A LAKERS AND DODGERS FAN ON THIS DAY. He's from el Salvador, but he lived in Pasadena and now he is my buddy. He's like 60 though.

Thursday- we went to Cafe Rio to switch back to our normal companionships and it was fun. Apparently, Hna Cory Moberly's current companion waited for her visa in this mission and was Hna Wilcox's companion. Small world! How crazy is that? We did a Finding Fest on Monday and our mission found 227 new investigators in 3 hours. Isn't that incredible? Our zone had 45 on our own. We were doing this as an Ebenezer, which is a token of gratitude. Our mission has been focused on consecrating ourselves, so our zone made a goal to find 100 this week. On average, we have found 2 new investigators every day this week. It’s a lot of work and our schedules are completely filled. But this day we found 4 through members and a list of potential investigators that we have. Our total for this week was 104! 104 new investigators found in one week by 25 of us. I think that can count as consecration. I love it!

Friday- rough day for me. First I locked us out of the apartment on our way to the gym. We left at 6:30 and didn't get back in until 10:45. And we had to go through the district leader and the assistants to the president and some people in the mission office. It was a long process, but I read 20 conference talks. It’s a good thing we had our iPads. We had a member come with us to a lesson, but they weren't home. So we went a few houses down to a less active/part member family. It turns out the member that we had with us really needed to go to that home because she had been in the same exact situation as the family. The lord really is directing this work and Hna Haubner and I just do what he tells us. It’s always ends up working out! Also, every Friday the ward plays sports at the church building and we get to bring investigators and new members and play. It’s so much fun and its one of the 2 times that I get to do this a week. I never knew I could miss playing sports so much! The only bummer is that they start playing soccer at 8:45 and we have to leave then to get home on time. Other than that it’s perfect!

Saturday- We spent an hour and half of our time just going through back up plans looking for someone to teach. We even had a member with us and door after door was unsuccessful. And it was so hot. I feel really bad for the missionaries on bikes! But after this long time, 3 doors in a row we taught a lesson and made return appointments. Sometimes it just takes persistence...a lot of it. We picked up our lunches and lunches for the trio of hermanas in our ward around 4 and then we had to pick up our dinners and for our zone leaders at 5. We had stake conference that night, so we drove all of these meals to the stake center and didn't get there until right before the meeting started. So we had 9 meals in our car and because of how big the meals they give us are, we could have lived on that for 2 or 3 weeks. So don't ever worry about me going hungry. I'll be just fine! But that night, we all had to wait until 8ish for our food and we were starving. But the meeting was really, really good! For the second time since I've been here, 2 Elders in our ward have showed up at a house that we are already teaching in. Many of the families here liv together, so we each have investigators in that home and a recent convert.  So we had 2 lessons going at the same time. Needless to say the spirit was very strong in that house :)

Sunday- Stake Conference is really great :) it was a little strange because that is the first meeting I have been to in English in 2 months! Weird. But I learned a lot! After that we had correlation meeting with the ward mission leader which is hard for me because I'm supposed to speak only Spanish instead of Spanglish. Then we went to McLean to get some stuff for my compañera. She has been having some health problems lately, but she is getting better! The lady we talked to complimented me. I guess I've been helping by sending out good energy :) haha, she was kinda strange. But we had a really good discussion about how everything on this earth has been made for our use if we use it with knowledge and skill. And we also talked about guardian angels. We could very well have ancestors and future posterity helping us out because we have bodies and that is the goal. The children we are going to have want to do everything they can to help us so that they can come and receive bodies as well. Just a really cool thought and something to think about deeply. I believe that Papa is helping me out :) every time I find a penny!

Then we had a fireside where 2 people spoke about their conversions. They both used to be pastors and went through 8 or so years of school for it. A year ago they got baptized and became members of this church. They recently went through the temple and got sealed. Their testimonies are super strong and I wish that all of my investigators could have been there.

I GOT TO PLAY SOCCER THIS MORNING and it was so fun! We played with the other Hermanas and the family Maldonado. It was really just so great and I looked like I really knew what I was doing with them, so that was a bonus! :) Best work out I've had since I've been here. 

In my studies this week I found a really cool survey in Preach my gospel. Here are the questions, except I want to apply them to your lives. If it were your last day in this life, what do you want to say you have done? What do you want to have become? What differences do you want others to notice in you? And what are you going to do now to get there?

I watched a restoration video again and got something else out of it this time that I want to share. When Joseph Smith was having a hard time, he received revelations directly from God to comfort him. When you are having a hard time, shouldn't you be able to receive revelation and comfort from God as well? You can, because all the things that Joseph received were recorded and we have them in the scriptures. We also have the Bible and the Book of Mormon. That is a place that we can turn to when we need strength and direction. It is what the scriptures are for. Never forget to turn to them.

The work is great and I learn more and more every day. It’s not perfect, but  nothing on earth is perfect. I'm growing closer to Christ and I know that our testimonies go stronger when we obey. We will always receive blessings for being obedient. Don't forget to read the Book of Mormon. It’s true. Joseph Smith translated it and it helps everything. Love you all!

Love,

Hermana Moberly

Burke Lake

Hermana McDonald and Me

Hermana McDonald, Hermana Haubner and Me

Locked Out!

The roads we drive...can't wait for fall.

Drove behind a Lamborghini...NBD

Springfield VA, Week 2

September 16, 2014

So, last week when we were here in the library and guy came up to us and asked us if we were latter-day saints. We said yes and he tells us that the Holy Spirit "compelled" him to come over to us and share something. He asked if he could share a scripture and we said of course, preparing to receive criticism for our beliefs. He starts reading to us in Galatians. And he just keeps reading and reading. By a scripture we thought he meant a few verses, but he just read us the entire book of Galatians in his version of the bible. Then he just stands up and say, "it was a pleasure to meet you both" and walks out. It was so strange!
I got a letter addressed to Hermana Cory Moberly this week, so that was weird. But it was for me...

So we have our P-Day today because we had drivers training yesterday. The Hermanas in our zone showed up an hour late because our zone leaders told us it was at the wrong place. But then we practiced using our ABS (in the parking lot) which was kind of fun but terrifying at the same time.  It works on our car very well. We had to accelerate to 40mph and then stop immediately. We stopped probably 20 feet from where we slammed on the breaks. CRAZY. We also had to practice backing up, since there is a designated driver. I get to stand outside the car and direct every time we back up anywhere. Sometimes it’s kind of awkward, but we make it work.
            Sometimes I forget we are speaking in Spanish because I can understand so well, but then I want to say something and I can’t get it together in my head. It’s a little bit frustrating, but it gets better every day.  At district meeting we practiced teaching in Spanish and I impressed a lot of people with how much I know, so that was fun :)

I knocked my first door this week! In a complex where nearly every one speaks Spanish. And they opened the door. To my surprise, my first door was some Muslim people. It was a strange conversation because I guess they believe in every religion. They say that they believe all that we believe and we had no idea what else to say. It was very weird, so we just asked for some referrals and went on our way.

We have an investigator that has been taught for years...my thoughts are that hopefully I can be the one that can help her decide to be baptized. I've come to realize I need to be more patient. I think I want her to get an answer about baptism more than she does. I didn't know patience could be such a big deal.

President Riggs always tells us that a pen is a revelatory tool when used correctly! Whenever you go to church or firesides or anything, bring a pen and paper and you will learn so much more.

There are some youth that have been recently converted so we get to visit them all the time and they are the best! I love them all! They are really great examples for their families and for their friends. We take them with us on visits with less actives and investigators and I wish that I had had the chance to do that when I was younger. It really helps the missionary work when the members are willing to help and meet and fellowship.
We were supposed to go to someones house for dinner one night and we used the address in the directory, but she moved a month ago and we ended up being an hour late! We felt so bad! And we missed out on the chance to do some missionary work. We were able to give a pamphlet to the people living in her old house though, so it wasn't too pointless!
            This week we found a less active girl named Tamy and her boyfriend, Christian who is not a member. We shared a message with her about faith. Afterwards she told us that she works on Sundays but wants to come back to church and is looking for other jobs.  She completely related the scripture to herself in her life and has a very strong testimony. We invited them to our noche de hogar that night and they came and she brought 2 friends and her little brother as well. It was super cool!

I made chocolate shakes for my one week celebration...they were almost as good as dads, but we have organic chocolate sauce, so that was strange, but still good! I made cookies this week as well for investigators. I should probably learn how to make healthy food...

This week we asked an investigator to pray using one of our folletos and he started reading the box of directions like it was a prayer and I was trying so hard not to laugh! We had to explain more clearly that it was a conversation, not a recitation. I still have a problem with laughing when I am not supposed to.

We have a list of the members that are in our area and we are going through and visiting the ones that we don't know yet, and we actually found 3 inactive members and so we were able to share a scripture with them and invite them back to church. They explained why they didn't want to come and we helped them understand the importance of attending and promised blessings. 2 of them promised they would come back (one for sacrament only, but it’s a step) and hopefully they can realize how big of an affect it has on their lives. Also, that same day we found 4 new investigators, how great is that? And we found 4 more yesterday during our finding fest! We had 3 hours to go out and find 2 new investigators each, but we were able to find 4 in 2 hours since we had an appointment already scheduled. But we just followed the spirit and used member referrals and we found them :) #raiseourebenezer2014. Our zone found 45 during that time. I’m so glad I’m in the Spanish part because all of them are open and willing to learn more about God and Christ and it makes our work so much easier!
            This week has been the fastest of my life and it’s kind of scary...If my mission goes this fast it will feel like a month. I don't want that because I love my life how it is right now.
 I want to share some lyrics to a song that we listen to almost every day, "all this time from the first tear cried to today’s sunrise and every single moment between, you were there--you were always there--it was you and I. You've been walking with me all this time." Christ is always with us whether we know it or not. He wants to help us and we can find strength in the Atonement. The atonement wasn't just to suffer for our sins. He did it also to know how we feel. Because he knows how we feel he knows exactly how to help us. Ask for it and you can receive it.

I read an awesome scripture about doing the temple work for the dead and it really changed my perspective. D+C 128:22. At the very end it says, "and the prisoners shall go free". How great does that sound? There are people waiting for us to do their work and when we do it they are set free. I can see it. They are stuck where they are and as soon as we do that work for them they are free and can continue to progress. From this I have a new perspective about the importance of Family History work and Returning to the temple for me as well as the people I go for. It’s an amazing thing that we are able to do with the Power of God and His perfect plan!

There is a story in 1 Nephi 7 where Laman and Lemuel are very mad at Nephi, so they tie him up and leave him to die. But he prays for strength according to his faith in Christ. He tries talking to Laman and Lemuel again and they get even angrier, but others tell them how they are acting and they humble themselves and ask for forgiveness. Nephi forgives them right away. There are a lot of things that we can learn from this story, but 2 that I want to point out-

1. He prays for strength according to his faith. When we have more faith, the Lord will help us and bless us more.

2. Nephi forgives his brothers for trying to kill him. It should be easier for us to forgive others as well, because most of the time they aren't trying to do something like kill us. The Lord forgives us for all the things we do wrong and we need to forgive others as well.

Things I learned from President so far:

Interviews with president this week...it’s not really an interview, but it’s awesome. He is a great man and so inspired and I know he is called of God and I don't want him to leave ever. I have already learned so much from him in the few times he has taught us.
*Doing things in the name of Christ means that you are saying what Christ would say. Our prayers should be humble and sincere as Christ would be if he were the one saying the prayer. It is the same with talks and testimonies.
*Virtue = power and it isn't unlimited. We need to fill ourselves with virtue so we can share that with others.
*We will always be blessed for our obedience- "Every person born into the world receives the Light of Christ, which helps us see and feel what is right and what is wrong. God has sent mortal servants who can, by the Holy Ghost, help us recognize what He would have us do and what He forbids. God makes it attractive to choose the right by letting us feel the effects of our choices. If we choose the right, we will find happiness--in time. If we choose evil, there comes sorrow and regret--in time. Those effects are sure. Yet they are often delayed for a purpose. If the blessings were immediate, choosing the right would not build faith. And since sorrow is also sometimes greatly delayed, it takes faith to feel the need to seek forgiveness for sin early rather than after we feel its sorrowful and painful effects. (A Priceless Heritage of Hope)" We don't always receive blessing even in this life, but we will get them, even if it is in our next life.
*"You want to want the celestial kingdom, but do you really really want it?" We have to change our desires to celestial desires if we want the celestial kingdom. My mission president is a very consecrated man and we should all work to be more consecrated in all we do.
*Lay claim to blessings here and in the life to come.
*Faith is kindled when you hear testimonies. Never be afraid to share yours!
*Do all things willingly and you will receive those blessings.

Love,

Hermana Moberly

President and Sister Riggs and Me, Sept 3, 2014

Washington DC South Arriving Missionaries, Sept 3, 2014

My First Door!

The View from out balcony.

Some scary looking fruit that I ate. ; )

Our car...sorry Cory ; )

A sweet gift from a sweet investigator

Springfield, Virginia Week One

Well, it is official. I am a real missionary for the church of Jesus Christ of latter day saints! How awesome is that? I'm serving in the Little River ward here. There is one Spanish ward in each Stake, so our area covers about half of the Stake...it’s pretty big. There are 5 hermanas and 4 elders in our ward as well. As far as good news goes, my Spanish isn't too bad. I can understand most people really, it’s the speaking part that is a little bit harder for me.

By the end of the day I am so exhausted and I sleep real well, it’s fantastic. And my companion, Hermana Haubner sleeps silently, so I don't have to worry about that either :) The only thing is, at night there are so many bugs out and they are LOUD. So loud it’s incredible! They are also very big and scary and I do not enjoy that.

So last Wednesday I got to wake up at 1 AM so I could get to my 6AM flight. Who knows why we are supposed to leave so early. But we got to Texas and oh my goodness it is completely different. It was my first time in that state and all of the people working there were wearing cowboy hats and had those strong southern accents. Also, I was really struggling with saying simple things in English like sorry and thank you because it’s been 6 weeks of Spanish. I got some really weird looks from people. Also, while we were there, we got Taco Bell and it was delicious! Best food besides pizza in a while. And then when we got to DC, our bags hadn't come on our same flight. They didn't leave Texas until the next flight to DC, so we went out and did some work with the Hermanas in Old Town. It was super cool. One person we tried to talk to and he said he didn't want to come to church, so I settled with giving him a Mormon.org card and explained what it was and he said he would check it out. So that was a cool experience! Then we went and got our bags and went to the mission home. We had the best dinner I think I've ever had...it was lasagna. And I loved it. We were so exhausted so we were allowed to go to bed early. The next morning, we had pancakes for breakfast :) And then we went to some meetings and got our iPads and signed papers and stuff. Then we met our companions! I was first, of course and my companion is super awesome and I love her! :) She entered the MTC the week after Cory, so I will be her last companion on the mission. I hope I can be good enough for her.

My ward is huge and it is already super hard to remember all of their names. So there's that and I have to speak in Spanish. It’s not very easy.

Lessons with investigators have gone much better than I thought because I can understand almost everything the people say, as long as they aren't speaking too fast. Also, there are a ton of different accents here, so hopefully everyone can understand me when I speak.

The best part of being out here is that I get to study the gospel for hours every morning to prepare before I go out and teach. I have learned so much already and I am really excited to continue. I never knew it was possible to receive so much revelation. Most of the time what I study doesn't seem very relevant until I'm in a lesson and I can either find a scripture, or remember what I had learned about it. It’s really cool.

So, Saturday here was super, super hot, but today looks like it is going to rain and I can't figure out the weather because it’s kind of cold.

Last night, we were going to teach a lesson to one of our investigators, but he wasn't home, so we planned to knock some doors. We said a quick prayer to know where to go in the building, and then a Latino man came walking down the stairs. His name is Hector and we started talking about the Gospel. The good thing about Latinos is they always have a strong belief in Christ. We ended up getting his address to visit him later. Then we felt impressed to go downstairs and knock, but again a man came down the stairs and we talked to him as well. He was even more interested. His name is Raul and he wants to come to our ward's Family Home Evening activity on Thursday night. It was a really great night because we found 2 people in a row who we surprised with our Spanish and were interested in the church. I'm so glad we had the inspiration that we had, because that was really great.

Today we went to Panera to sync our iPads to get our emails and we ended up talking to Chileans for 1 1/2 hours and we're going to go see them again later on this week. Seriously, I just can't get over how amazing my life is. No wonder Cory kept telling me she wanted me to go on a mission. Definitely the best decision I have ever made.

So this Sunday I shared my testimony in sacrament meeting and directed singing time in Primary...all in Spanish. It was really fun, but I was so nervous! I know I had the Lord's help in all of these things this week and I will have it constantly for the rest of my time here. I'm so grateful for this opportunity to serve and I know this church is true.

Love you and miss you all!

Me and Hermana Haubner

Love,

Hermana Moberly

My Walk to the Gym Every Morning

My large closet ;)

The Only Way to Study!

Springfield Virginia!

Hi momma and fam! I got here safely and I've been loving every minute! My new address-

Hermana Kelly Moberly

8511 Bauer Dr. #24

Springfield, VA 22152

I've already had the chance to go out and teach in Spanish and its going really well. My apartment is super nice and my companion is amazing. Her name is Hermana Haubner and she reminds me so much of Cory and I just love her already! My mission President is super awesome too. Everything is perfect and I'm so happy I'm finally out and able to do this work. I'll email on Monday! Love you guys :)

Love,

Hermana Moberly

Para Siempre Dios Este Con Vos

¡Hola Amigos! ¿Qué pasa?

This week has been another great one here in Mexico. I leave tomorrow morning (technically tonight) to head back to the states. I´m super excited, but also pretty sad. Me and my compañera are the only two remaining from our district, so that is pretty sad! We sent off our 2 roommates last night at 2 AM. They are going to Oklahoma and they are going to be great misioneras. The rest of our district left on Monday morning or Tuesday morning, so for P-day today it’s just me and Hermana McMillan. 

I got some beef jerky on Thursday night and it was the best thing I’ve had since I´ve been here. I almost cried when I was eating it because I miss real American food so much!

We´ve had a couple of power outages here and its super funny. The 3 other Hermanas and I just sit there for a few seconds and we can here the girls across the street screaming and then we just laugh at them. It’s not scary because it doesn´t go out during storms. One night we just got our flashlights, didn´t need to say a word and just kept writing in our journals. It’s pretty funny how nonchalant we are about it.

This week I have learned a lot and I just want to share some things with you all. First, prayers really do get answered! I know that without a doubt! I had to play the piano in sacrament meeting this last week and I was terrified. Every time I had practiced when people were singing I couldn´t stop messing up. So I just said a prayer asking the Lord that if I practiced as much as could here with my free time if He would help me when it came time to play. And He certainly did. I was able to play almost perfectly and much better than any other time I had practiced. I know that was because i asked for His help and He was there for me! And then, I said the closing prayer in sacrament meeting also, so I played the last song and got up from the piano and went to the podium. It was pretty funny :)

This week we taught 3 lessons in one day and none of them were planned. Our teacher came and surprised us. He brought some people for our district to teach. One of them was a non-member, so we got the experience of teaching a real investigator. We really had to follow the Spirit in this lesson and it was pretty hard. We were the last ones who taught her and we asked if she would get baptized and she said yes! How cool is that? She got 5 lessons (probably all the same) in one day. It was a super cool experience and I can´t wait until my Spanish is better and I can teach more effectively!

I was reading in the Book of Mormon this week and found a super awesome scripture. It is 2 Nephi 33:15. The last words are the Lord hath commanded me, and I must obey. I love this scripture because it shows how much trust Nefi had in the Lord. Not only that, but those are his last words that he writes in the Book of Mormon. His final testimony shows his willingness to follow the Lord. I want to live my life in a way to where I can say that. He has commanded it, so I must do it. Without a question. It is so powerful and I love it. 

Also, 2 Nefi 3:12 says out of weakness he will be made strong. I think we can all apply this in our lives. We all have weaknesses, but when we are obedient and trust in the Lord, he will strengthen us. We can all be strengthened according to our faith in Him. 

Obedience is the link between testimony and conversion. Testimony is not enough. In order to be fully converted to the gospel and to Christ, we must be obedient. Always obey, in any situation. Don´t change yourself depending on who you are with. Be constant and love the Lord. If you love Him, keep His commandments.

Some things Elder Scott said this Sunday- Impressions--you can either retain them or rationalize them away. Which one do you want to be accountable for? God will fit whatever task you have to perform to your capability. Rely on Him. He will help you.

So every Sunday here, there is a slide show of all of the Elders and Hermanas leaving in the coming week, so this week my district was up there and it was super awesome. Then everyone sings ´´Para Siempre Dios Este Con Vos´´ which is ´´God Be With You Till We Meet Again´´. I actually did really good and didn´t cry too much :)

These last 6 weeks have been so amazing. I have learned and grown so much and I have really come to love it here. I am so excited to get out into the world and teach real people and really serve and help them. I know that this church is true. From what has happened in my life because I have the gospel, how could it not be true? I love this message that I have to share, whether in English or Spanish and I love the Lord and all He has done and continues to do for all of us. He loves us more than we know and we can never repay Him for all that He gives us. I love the Book of Mormon and all that it can help us with. It contains the fulness of the gospel when it works with the Bible and I am so lucky to have grown up in this church. Now it is my turn to share this with others and truly be a representative of Jesus Christ, my Savior and Redeemer. I love you all so much and I hope you can see how big of a blessing the gospel is. It’s the truth and we have the opportunity to share it. The church is true and God loves us more than we know. Remember this always!

Love, 

Hermana Moberly

Hermana Silva and the 17-D Hermanas

My CCM Buddies

The Greatest District...17-D

Hermano Rodriguez and our district 

All the missionaries leaving this week.