Una Semana De Milagros

Well, to say the least, this has been the best week on my mission so far. It started off pretty bad, but just got better and better! I had a really bad cold on Tuesday and Wednesday, which made everything hard. I've never seen weather change like this before, so it wasn't too fun. The funny thing was that Hermana Haubner had a doctor's appointment on Wednesday morning, so I was sitting in there with her coughing and sniffing. The worst part was that ESPN was on in the office. Talk about temptations! It wasn't until we got home that things changed.

Our mission theme for this quarter is based on the Christmas song Little Drummer Boy. We are focusing on giving all we can to the Lord at this time in the mission. October's focus is on giving Him our will, November is giving our thanks, and December is giving our love. We have a goal for every zone to get 3 baptisms in October, 4 in November and 5 in December. The reason that I love that song so much is because the little boy gave the only thing he had. Look at how many things we have that we can give. I made a decision on what I want to give, but it’s going to take a long time and it’s going to be really, really hard. But I made this decision and then it was lunch time, so I took a nap. When I woke up, I was feeling soooo much better and I was ready to go to work.

That night, we went through all of our plans and back-up plans and prayed a lot to know where we should go. We had a feeling that we should visit Rolando. He was on date for baptism before, but since I'd been here we still hadn't met him. But that night we found him and set up a time to come back. His question for us was how can he know which way is the right way and be strong enough to resist wanting to go on other paths. That night as I was saying my prayer I received some revelation to share the story of the Tree of Life. When we went back, we taught him about that story and the importance of holding on the word of God to keep us on the right path. Hermano Deza came with us and they got along so well, it just went perfectly. Now he is on date to be baptized on the 14th of November! That was the first miracle we saw this week.

The next day we visited Maria, someone we had contacted a few weeks ago. We met with her and her brother, Francisco (that's fun to say :)) and they were so prepared. We taught them about the Book of Mormon and answered some of their questions. We were only planning on inviting them to be baptized, but we felt prompted to ask with a date. They are now preparing to be baptized on November 15th. When we left their house, they had looked up the movie "The Testaments" on YouTube and were going to watch it. They are so ready for what we have to share with them and I am so excited. So by the end of Friday night, we went from having 1 investigator on date, to 4.

The next day we went to carve pumpkins at one of our recent convert's houses. She is the only active member in her family. She has 2 younger siblings that are baptized, but they never go to church. So we carved pumpkins with them and their 2 cousins, one being our investigator, Kimberly. I wish I could explain to you the relationships of everyone in that home. About 16 people live there together, some are related and some are not. But we taught them a little more about baptism and invited 9 year old Kimberly to be baptized the 26th of October. That's 5 on date. She wants to do it, so we have the potential to have a baptism this coming Sunday! :D

In order to be baptized, our investigators have to go to Sacrament Meeting at least 3 times to show that they are willing to come back and ready to join the church. Sunday morning, we went over to see Kimberly and make sure that she was going to church. We got there and she looked so cute in her dress, but then 10 minutes later she came up stairs in jeans and a T-shirt. We had no idea what happened, but we showed her the Restoration video and testified non-stop about how much church can help with everything, but she just flat-out didn't want to go. She had only been to church once, so she needed to go that day and next week so she can get baptized. We left their house after we did all we could and the Spirit was so strong, but she didn't want to go. We left and ended up being a little late for sacrament meeting, but we were mad that things didn't go as we planned and we were sad that she didn't want to go. I calmed down as we took the sacrament and tried to see the reason behind all that happened, but I was still sad. Then, there was a miracle, and the whole family that lives in that house came into the chapel. Including Kimberly. Hna Haubner and I were so happy that we almost started crying. She went to church and afterwards was so happy and she was so cute! It was the most stressful morning of my life, but the most rewarding when she walked in with her mom, Ada. We had 4 of our investigators at church, which is a huge step from 1.

We just had miracles on top of miracles this week and it all changed as soon as I decided what I was going to give this year to Christ. It’s going to take a lot of work, but because of all the things that have happened, I know that I'm giving up my will, and showing my gratitude and love. When we do hard things the Lord blesses us in every aspect of our lives.

Now for the funny stuff...there was some good stuff this week-

-We were going to a lesson with some members and one of them asks us, "Conocen Chevy Chase?" (do you know Chevy Chase?) I responded with a "si" thinking he was talking about the actor...then I was really confused when he was talking about a place. It turns out there is a city called Chevy Chase in Maryland, which I was not familiar with at all, but we had a good laugh about that!

-One day, I was talking to one of the youth in Spanish and I said, "Yo tengo pesos" (I have pesos), but she thought I said besos, and that means kisses, so that was kinda weird. haha

-In the MVOC class last week, Elder Benson (from Ventura) was cracking jokes the whole time. The teacher asked us, "What is the driver's duty?" and he whispers, "dead guy duties" and I was dying. He did this through the entire class. The worst part was when the instructed drew a car and he whispers, "is that a submarine?" It did look like a submarine so I was smiling and trying not to laugh, but that was right when the instructor turned around. He thought I was laughing at his drawing, but I wasn't and he called me out for it...so I just took it and Elder Benson laughed so hard because he knew it was his fault.

-One night we went to a member's house for dinner with the other 2 hermanas in our ward, but afterwards went to a different apartment upstairs to sing happy birthday to someone. So we went inside and started sharing a message, and two other hermanas showed up and it was so funny. There was only one person in the house, so we joint taught.

-We are teaching a part-member family and their son is 2 years old. I thought they were calling him Alex, but sometimes they would call him Ben. So that night, I said to Hna Haubner, I can't figure out what his name is...is it Ben or Alex? Apparently "ven" is a command in Spanish that means come. But the b and v are the same sound in this language. His name is Alex and when I thought they were calling him Ben, they were really just telling him to come.

-I made a new friend this week. He's 3 and his name is Nasri. He was telling me all about ninja turtles and showed me his sweet ninja moves. We were sharing a message with Kimberly and were talking about how since we are all sons and daughters of God, we are princes and princesses. He didn't like that because he said he was a ninja, not a prince.

This week was amazing, and I hope it was for all of you as well! Miracles happen when we do the Lord's will. He wants to bless us, we just need to do a little to receive those blessings. Always remember to pray. Prayer is a great tool to find out what the Lord wants and to receive comfort. Love you!

Love,

Hermana Moberly

The Squad

Miracle Pumpkins

Emergency Rooms Are Not Fun

It’s been a pretty exciting week to say the least! We have a car again and this time I get to drive :) It’s a 2014 white Chevy Cruze. Smallest car I've ever driven and its strange being so low on the ground. Also, the pedals are a lot more sensitive, so it was a fun first day, haha. I love it though!

We had our first thunder and lightning storm since I've been here this week and it was really fun. We opened up all of the windows in our apartment to listen to it :)

So on Wednesday night, we got home for dinner and I was opening up a can of chili and sliced my right pinky open. It was really, really deep, so we had to go to the emergency room. My companion was freaking out more than I was, so that was funny. My biggest fear was that she would be driving us, but we got there safely. So I ended up getting a couple stitches. There's a first time for everything, right? We ended up giving my nurse a Book of Mormon. His name was Randall and I just kept thinking of Monster's Inc.! I didn't like being there because everyone else had a much bigger problem than I did and I just felt like I could put a bandaid on my finger and be fine. But I heal fast and I probably could have had the stitches taken out on Sunday, but I'm supposed to go back this Tuesday. From this experience I felt bad that we wasted a few hours of proselyting time. Also, my pride is hurt a little bit because it’s not even a cool story. Why do embarrassing things only happen to me on the mission? Probably so I am more humble...haha

We had transfer meeting on Thursday and it was really special, because we got permission for the entire mission to meet together. We watched Meet the Mormons, which was a really awesome movie. We loved it! They really got some very different people to help and I think it helps explain who we are so well. We are a little strange, but there's more to it than just the rules. Hermana Haubner and I are still here in Little River. Another cool thing this transfer, none of the Spanish speaking sisters got moved this time. President Riggs was announcing the companionships and he says, "Hermanas, I know you are confused at what is happening, but I have a plan." I trust him, so we'll see what his plan will be in 5 1/2 weeks!

That night we were going to go visit our investigator, Ada. We ended up helping her daughter with her homework. Kimberly is 9 and she doesn't speak English. She came from Honduras a few months ago, so we were translating her homework from English to Spanish for her. She is a very smart girl and she loves reading. She reads the Book of Mormon by herself, which is really amazing. What 9 year old do you know that does that? She's amazing. Then we helped them start making decorations for Stephanie's Quincenera on Saturday night.

On Friday we had a Noche de Hispanidad since it is Hispanic awareness month. It was so much fun! Each country was represented by a booth with food and facts and fun stuff like that. The missionaries had our own booth and we had gotten all of the different Books of Mormon in languages spoken in South America (there were 15). The elders made some cookies (they weren't very popular, hahaha), and we made a slideshow with all of the temples there. It turned out pretty well. Then we had a talent show for all of the Hispanic talents. Our investigator, Byron sang 4 songs for it! A lot of the members in the ward don't know that he isn't a member because he is always at church and participating in all activities and classes. We found out on Friday morning that the missionaries were supposed to participate in the show, so our Ward Mission Leader asked us to sing America the Beautiful....haha, for Hispanic awareness. We thought that was really funny. I mean, we are all Americans!

There was a baptism on Saturday night and there is a Missionary presentation between the baptism and the next speaker, so they have time to change into dry clothes. Hermana Haubner and I got to do it again and it went so much better. A bunch of the ward members complimented me on my Spanish, because it is so much better than it was the last time we spoke! That made me feel really good.

On Sunday I had the opportunity to go with a few of the recent converts to the visitors center at the temple. It was amazing! The temple is beautiful!! It’s so bright and surrounded by trees, so when you go at night it looks like its floating. It was so pretty. They had a Spanish program that we went to and they showed a lot of videos and a lot of missionaries from the North mission sang and spoke. It was really great and we all loved it. On the drive back, Hermano Maldonado asked me to say the Articles of Faith in Spanish, so I tried. I got to 5 and then I couldn't remember it in English, but he thought I said toro(bull) when I had said todo(all) and he was laughing so hard! I just went with it, but I know he's going to tease me for it for a long time, haha.

We had training for driving again yesterday. It was so much fun! Last time we went for Hermana Haubner, but since I'm driving, I got to do it. So I got to get up to 40 MPH in the parking lot and then slam on the brakes. We stopped in about a car length and a half. It was so great. Last time I was so nervous because I wasn't the one driving. The "technology specialists" for our mission filmed parts of it...including my run through the part where we had to steer into a box. Then I got interviewed and they will be sending the video to Salt Lake! How cool is that?

That's all I got for this week, but it was great and I learned a lot. Sometimes things happen that affect your effectiveness, but if you keep going things will get better and you will be blessed! Love you!

Love,

Hermana Moberly :)

Spanish South Zone

Little River District

The Squad

After the Stitches

Don't Be Creepy

Hola!

So this last week it finally happened. We got in an accident on Saturday morning on our way to conference, so we missed the whole first session. The accident wasn't bad. No one was hurt except our car. We got a flat tire and we would have changed it, but the rim was cracked and the police officer told us that we shouldn’t change it, so our car was towed and the other Hermanas have been driving us everywhere. So we don't have a car at the moment and things are very difficult. On the bright side we are working with members a lot more so we can get around, it just takes a lot of planning and a lot of Spanish words that I don't know. Also, I get to drive when we get our car back and I won't have any more heart attacks.

Last week after I emailed we had my favorite P-day on the mission so far. We had a zone party to celebrate our finding 104 new investigators in one week. We had some delicious food and a basketball, soccer ball, volleyball, and frisbee...and then we played all of the sports. I didn't realize how much I really missed doing all of those things until that day. It was so much fun and I got some really good exercise even though I was wearing jeans, that was a mistake. I just think we should do that every P-day :)

We had a million meetings this week and they were all amazing! We have district meeting every week and mine is really great and I love them. Then on Wednesday we had a Spanish forum for all of the Spanish speaking missionaries in the mission. It was all in Spanish and I was feeling super good because I understood pretty much all of it. President Burton, who is over the Spanish section of the mission, is crazy. When I first met him he grabbed my hand, shook it, and yelled at me, "TELL ME YOUR STORY!" I didn't know what to say, so I said, "What do you want to know?" And he started asking a bunch of questions and it was kind of scary, but really funny too. Like I said, he is crazy. Then on Thursday we had return and report which is a meeting for all of the newest missionaries and their companions.  We watched a clip from Facing the Giants. I've never seen it before, but now I want to. It was a clip where the coach blindfolds a player and asks him to do a "death crawl" and he doesn't think he can go that far. But the coach pushes him to do his best and keep going and eventually the player makes it all the way 100 yards instead of the 10 they usually do. God is our coach and he is motivating us. We promised to do our best and we can do so much more than we think we can. It was a really great meeting :)

I have been learning and progressing so much recently and it has been truly amazing. But now, every meeting I go to I feel is like a call to repentance. Even though my habits are getting so much better and I'm growing closer to Christ, there is so much more I can do to be better. We are never just okay the way we are. We should always strive to be better because we can be. We have the potential to become like God. I think we can all do better in so many ways. If you catch yourself thinking you’re on the right track, like they said in conference, look for the blessing you have the ability to receive.  Also, think about if you are walking as the Savior walked. We can always improve, no matter what. We aren't perfect beings and we have weaknesses. Use the promises of the Lord to make them become your strengths.

There is a girl in our ward that has given nicknames to our zone leaders. She calls the Elder Big Lips and Elder Potter and we just laugh so hard. So Hermana Haubner and I have started giving nicknames to our zone and it has been really funny! Sometimes I can't remember their actual names and I just have to laugh and apologize, but it’s fun.

I got a package from home with all of my winter stuff JUST IN TIME! The last 2 days have felt like Christmas time in California. We were out on Saturday night and I just felt like we should be Christmas caroling, but it’s the beginning of October. I'm so worried about winter; I think I’m going to die.

Our investigator Jilma is hilarious, but sometimes I don't understand everything she says, so I have to do an awkward laugh and pretend I think it’s funny, even though I have no idea what's going on.  I got called a new name this week. Instead of all the weird pronunciations for the Latinos, I got called Elder Moberly by a new couple in the mission office. That was a first. There hasn't been one of those since my uncle Ryan served a mission!

Our service has mostly been getting people things from the store. We are professionals at getting people what they need from grocery stores. It’s sad, but we try to help and that is all they let us do. Give the missionaries something to do when they ask if you need anything. They want to serve everyone, even the members.

Since our mission president is pretty young, we have a thing for hashtags in this mission. If you ever need ideas for some good, cheesy, Mormon ones, let me know. I have plenty and I can see it will be a problem when I come home :) oh well. #consecration

We got 4 new investigators this week and that was great! Two of them were a great accident. We went to visit a member and she has some family staying for a few months from Honduras. The best part is that there's no chance we will lose them. They can't hide from us in a member home :) the other 2 we found from contacting potentials. One of them even prayed on our first visit! They are both very interested and we are excited for them!

Since we don't have a car, we've had to rely on others to help us out. We had a ride set for correlation meeting yesterday, but the man's wife didn't come like he said, so we couldn't get in the car. So we found another ride and got to the church building as our district was walking out...oops. Haha, our bad.

How about conference this weekend? Pretty amazing as always, am I right? I loved everything I heard and saw. I also I loved all of the people that spoke in their native languages. Cool story, Elder Gavarret who spoke in Spanish gave a devotional at the Mexico MTC while I was there! He's great! These are some of the things that I loved most about conference:
Elder Anderson- secure your faith before you try to help others. Their doubts could become your doubts if you don't have the anchor in the gospel that we all need.
Elder Klebingat- Use atonement 24/7. Through the Atonement we find forgiveness, strength, healing, and peace. When we use it all the time we can become more like Christ.
Elder Callister- Parenthood is very important. The world is going to get harder and harder, but when we strengthen ourselves we can be better parents. Parents are primary gospel teachers.
Elder Nelson- Sustaining is a lot of things including listening, trusting, honoring, praying for, defending, standing behind, doing what he says and loving Him. We have the privilege to sustain the prophet.

Elder Hales- We love God and Christ because they loved us first. Christ went forth doing the business of his Father. Shouldn't we do the same? Their purpose is to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man. Let’s help them with that by sharing the gospel with those who we love most.

Elder Hamula- Importance of the sacrament. This one was a bit of a call to repentance for me. I've always enjoyed taking the sacrament, but I think it needs to be a more personal time than I have used it. Think about what it means and why we do it. Without the sacrament we cannot fully repent or receive the strength possible through it.

President Monson- Decisions determine our destiny. Just because we have a divine heritage does not mean we will qualify for a divine inheritance. Walking where Christ walked is less important than walking as he walked.

Elder Ballard- Stay in the boat. Questions are a good thing. Spiritual questions deserve spiritual answers. Where do you go for answers and where should you go. Without Joseph Smith's question we wouldn't have the Gospel today.

Elder Bednar- Everything. I just want to print out this talk in Spanish and give it to all of my investigators.

            Overall it has been a wonderful week and I'm loving it all and learning and growing. I can't think of anywhere I would rather be :) Love you all!

Con amor,

Hermana Moberly

PS- Quote of the week from President Riggs, "Don't be creepy"

Me, Hermana's Brown, Haubner, and Moleli

Silly Us ;)

Breaking the news to Hermana Moleli...Pau is not a Laker anymore

Almost October

Hola familia y amigos! Como estan?

Happy two months to me last Tuesday! Celebrated with chocolate shakes...again :) Is it going by for you as fast as it is for me? Every Monday I just think, it’s already been a week since I emailed last? It’s crazy! Then I remember all of the things that have happened since then...feels like more than a week. We are just super busy ALL the time.

So a couple times this week we went to teach people and they seem really interested and they know a lot. They seem to know more than most people about the Fall and the things that we should do in this life. Then we bring up baptism and then they tell us that the Jehovah's Witnesses are teaching them and they aren't interested. Its ruining our effectiveness and it makes me sad.

This week, something we saw that inspired us was the difference going to church and reading the scriptures has in our lives. We have a recent convert in our ward, Nancy, that hadn't been to church in a while, but then she decided to go back last week and start reading the Book of Mormon again and everything changed. We can see how much it has blessed her life and the changes that she has the desire to make when she is doing these things. She is amazing. She is only 17 and has been through so many hard things with family and friends. But as she has begun doing the little things, the people who bring her down and the bad habits she has are slowly dropping out of her life. And it’s because she has begun to follow Christ again. She is rediscovering what slowly faded out of her life and it’s amazing.

We had a lesson with our investigator, Jilma this week. She's the one who has had the lessons for years, and it was a miracle. Somehow, I was able to ask inspired questions and understand everything. I even said a lot of things that I don't ever remember learning. The words were put in my mouth for the good of her life. It was an incredible experience and she understood everything I said. I know that it wasn't me talking. The words came out of my mouth, but they weren't mine. It was amazing. I know the Lord is directing this work.

So again this week, 2 times we ended up at the same house as the elders...I'm thinking we need to talk to them a little bit more. We almost always have appointments, so it’s not our fault. But awesome that we have 4 missionaries in a house with that family! Only 2 people that live there are members. One is 9 and the other is 14 and they are great examples.

Shout out to Kari, my Dad and Grammy for sending me letters :) and everyone else that have been emailing me! Love you guys!

I have met people from all over central and South America. Some of the countries are Ecuador, Honduras, Bolivia, Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala, Peru, Panama, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Puerto Rico, Nicaragua, and so on. We even met a guy from Morocco (but he didn't speak Spanish)!

This week we had a sister's meeting for all of the missionaries in our mission and it was so awesome! We just had an emphasis on being healthy in all ways, physically, spiritually, and mentally. And then we talked about having fun because apparently some missionaries think that missionary work is all serious. It’s a good thing I don't have that problem, I love having fun and I find plenty of ways to do it :)

We have an investigator on date for November 8. His name is Byron, so please pray for him! He is married to a woman still, but she won't get a divorce. He is currently living with a less active and they need to get married before he can be baptized. He's been looking for a lawyer, but it’s been very difficult, so please send some prayers his way. We need them!

Saturday was the most draining day of my life. We went to visit an investigator that we had passed on to the English Elders. We showed the Mormon Message about bullying and we cried and talked about the worth of souls and that meeting just took all of my energy. It turns out that last week, the young woman was being bullied and she tried to take her life.  I was exhausted afterwards, but I got the strength I needed to keep going. The Lord was able to help us know the things we should say and share. Please pray for them as well, their names are Heather and Blanch. After that we went to a baptism for an investigator that Hna Haubner had taught and it started an hour late. Earlier that day he decided he didn't want to be baptized anymore, so it was crazy for the hermanas that were teaching him. Saturday was just crazy for everyone. Because it was so late, we missed most of the Women's session of general conference, but we did make it to President Uchtdorf's talk and he’s always amazing. Heather was able to go as well and it was the perfect message for her to hear. We are children of God and nothing changes that. He loves us perfectly and wants what is best for us.

Also, sad news. Hermana McDonald, the one I was on exchanges with went home this week. She had Lyme’s disease and mono at the same time. She was so strong to keep going through that! I'm happy she is able to be home and recover though.

Hermana McMillan, my companion in the CCM, her boyfriend got his mission call....drumroll please! To the Washington DC South mission English speaking! How insane is that? They are going to be in the same mission! But as Spanish speakers we are very segregated from the English speakers, so it won't be too hard. It could be worse.

Funnies-

We were out knocking doors and two hombres walked by us and at the same time said, "GRINGAS!" so we said, "Si, Somos gringas!" and then we walked really fast to the car :)

On Tuesday I ate an entire box of macaroni and cheese for lunch all by myself. That was pretty cool. I've never done it before, haha

I was showing a recent convert pictures of my family (the 14 year old I mentioned earlier) and she says, "you have an attractive Dad" and I said "thank you?" and laughed

We get so many water bottles every day it’s crazy! I think we have 50 in our apartment now and a ton that we have only had 1/2 of. There are a lot.

A little kid told me I had a big nose. That was fun. Kids are bluntly honest. And then the same kids asked why I have water in my armpits. Kids are just great!

Sometimes at dinner appointments I eat some of Hermana Haubner's food because she can't eat it all. We have to be really sneaky about it, but we are getting really good! Haven't gotten caught yet!

There is an old man in our ward and every time he see's us he says, "Mis angeles!" That's all I understand because his Spanish accent is so different. I just smile and nod while he talks.

We love the video, The Hope of God's Light. I cry every time I watch it. If you haven't seen it, look it up. We share it with all of the teenagers that speak English every chance we get.

Apparently the English speaking sisters are not as friendly as us. We had some of the youth tell us that they like us better because we talk more and hug them. I guess it probably because Spanish speakers are more affectionate, and that's how we are as their missionaries. It was so weird, when we met Sister Nielson, the stake relief society president she just shook our hands instead of kissing us on the cheek. There is a big difference.

Sorry this letter is all over the place, it’s so hard for me to organize my thoughts.

I know that this church is true and I cannot wait until general conference next week. We are going to receive many answers and direction from the living prophet and apostles today. I love you all and hope you have a great week. Don't forget about conference :)

Love,

Hermana Moberly

My Nametag :)

Power Line/Tree Maintenance ;)

All the BOM Languages we use

Beautiful Sunset

Royal Lake Pond

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