Six Flags

June 8 2015

I feel like I have been riding roller coasters all week! We have had so many ups and downs and twists, but it’s been fun :) I am still learning more than I ever thought was possible. We started off the week by finishing putting all of our paper records onto the iPad Area Book, which took forever, so we are finally going to bed on time! :) Thanks to our district, they all stayed with us for two hours after district meeting and we put it all in. Such a relief! Then, we had exchanges with the other Hermanas in our ward. Hermana Tate came to our side with me and the two Hermana Christensen's were together in Arlington. It was awesome because we found a bunch of new investigators that are really solid. Because we are on exchanges so often, one of our investigators knows me, Hermana Christensen, Hna Mensinger, Hna Tate, and tomorrow she will meet Hna Peabody when we have our last set of exchanges this transfer. Quite the variety :)

This investigator is incredible and golden! We found her a couple weeks ago and we have been seeing her at least twice a week. This last week we also started teaching her boyfriend and her brother in law. They are doing so well and reading their assignments and praying. They are going to progress really fast. They were supposed to be at church on Sunday, but they didn't come, and we will figure it all out tomorrow. We are so excited for them though!

We found a young man named Andres and that lesson was amazing. We knocked on his door because we found his teaching record in the paper area book, so we stopped by. At first it was kind of crazy because he really didn't want to listen, but we were so ready to teach and the Spirit was so strong that as soon as we started explaining the truth of the gospel he stopped arguing and listened and got really interested. He started asking questions and it was so powerful. Usually when we talk to people in English we stumble over the words, but this time was basically perfect. The words were provided by the Spirit. There were questions that he asked that I didn't know how to respond to, but my companion did. And then there were questions that she didn't know how to answer, but I did. It was so incredible and it felt so good. Now he is listening to missionaries again and we get to talk even more :)

This week we had MLC (mission leadership conference) which was incredible. We talked a lot about establishing a culture for the mission for when our new mission president comes. It was really cool because we talked about the good and bad things about the mission culture now and we came up with a lot of ideas to make it better. It all came down to just having charity, the pure love of Christ. When we have charity for one another and for our investigators we will work harder and be more unified. So now on exchanges we will start training the Hermanas on charity...which means that I have to work even harder to have charity! I wouldn't say that I don't have charity, because I love a lot of people, but there is always more that I can do, so for the rest of my life I want to keep praying and using my charity. We also played a game of speed with all of the 50ish missionaries there and I came in 7th! I was so close, but then Hermana Pettit got me out. It was super fun! And President Riggs won again.

On Wednesday we had interviews with President, which was incredible as usual. He is an amazing man and I love him so much. He gave me a blessing and it helped me focus on my purpose and help so many more people. He has so much gospel knowledge and answered all of my questions perfectly. I am going to miss him so much! He is leaving at the end of this transfer, which will be on the 26th.

You know that we have been working hard because we had 6 investigators at sacrament meeting and 5 less active/recent converts at church. IT WAS AMAZING! It’s so incredible to see the progress of the people here and how much they are learning. I'm so lucky to be a missionary here and now. I love every minute, even if it hurts sometimes. There is nothing else I would rather do. Thank you for all of your prayers! You are the best! Love you :)

Love,

 Hermana Moberly

6 Packs

June 1 2015

IT’S JUNE! How did that happen? Is anyone else as surprised as I am? That's crazy! Time just won't slow down.

This week went by super fast! We went to Maryland three times :) Only to the visitor's center at the temple. We watched Meet the Mormons twice! Once in English and once in Spanish. Those people are just so incredible! I don't think I could get tired of that movie :) It’s too good. Also, I got sick this week, so I spent a little extra time sleeping. That always makes time go faster. Then, like usual, because I was sick my voice decided to stop working, so I have been voiceless for a few days. Yesterday was the worst day and Hermana Christensen and I taught Gospel Principles at church. Let’s just say that no one would ever want to hear my singing right now ;) haha

Mission news: We have Tiwis now, which aren't nearly as bad as we thought they were. We can drive just like we used to without a problem. It just has a creepy voice and we have to log in every morning. It tells you to check your speed when you are going 10 over, which isn't bad!

We have what's called an Area Book, which is a record of every person the missionaries have talked to in this area. The one that we have for this area is HUGE! And we have to have it all transferred onto the iPads by Saturday...so we have been staying up and using all of our free time to get it all in before the sixth. We are trying to convince our district to help us after our meeting tomorrow, so we'll see how that goes. As soon as we finish getting it all in we are getting back onto facebook and other online things, but it'll be a lot better now! So get ready! :)

We went on exchanges this week and Hermana Mensinger came to Bella Vista with me! But I forgot to get a picture with her :( sorry. It was awesome! We found some new investigators and learned a lot from each other. I've always loved exchanges because you learn so much. And since I get to go 4 times this transfer I learn even more! It’s the best and I love it :)

One of the days that I was really sick I was texting someone and wrote "muy gracias" instead of "muchas gracias". That's like saying thanks very instead of thank you very much...oops :)

Hermana Christensen and I have decided that we are going to have 6 packs by the end of this transfer because we just laugh and laugh whenever we are together. It’s the best!

That's all I have for this week, sorry it’s kind of lame. A lot more has happened, but there is no time! I have seen so many miracles and I wish I could tell you them all, but there will be time for that later. God's plan is perfect! He puts us where we need to be when we need to be there and He guides us. Even though things might seem to be going wrong, that is how He wants it to happen and it will only be for the best, even if it is hard!

Love you and miss you! Have a great week :)

Love,

 Hermana Moberly

Christmas and Morphosis

May 25, 2015

     What a week we have had over here! So many miracles :) I'll start off with a little bit of what happened last week. Hermana Christensen and I planned and set up a wedding last Saturday! The Elders in our ward were there trying to set up the reception, but it didn't look very good and they were more than happy to leave us in charge, so we took care of it and Lesly was so happy :)

     On Monday night this week I stole an idea from past family home evenings and we made a scavenger hunt. We had a bunch of scriptures that led to the next clue. It was a lesson on enduring to the end, which was really good for all of the recent converts that came. They

loved it!

     During district meeting this week, one of the elders was talking about a very rich area of our ward and he said that one of their investigators was "raking in the dough". There is an elder from Mexico in the district as well, and he has only been here for 4 years, so when he heard that he was thinking about cookie dough. Someone asked how to say that in Spanish, so we translated it normally to earning lots of money. And he was sitting there and says, "Oh, so dough means money!" And it was hilarious! Hahaha

     This week while we were driving we hit a snake. Out of all of the animals possible, it was a snake...but it didn't die, so we went back and took a picture of it :)

     The title of this email is Christmas and Morphosis, because a little girl was trying to remember our names and that is what we got :)

     We had exchanges this week, which was super cool! Weird that I was on the trainer side this time. I went back to Sudley, but on the opposite side of where I was and I was with Hermana Mugleston (she truly is a muggle because she hasn't even seen or read any Harry Potter). It was so cool, because in one lesson, we walked in and we sat down and I just had a wave of love come over me. I was just sitting there before we really even started talking to her, and I already felt so much love for her. The lesson went so well and it was one of the best experiences that I have had so far! I loved it :)

     Every morning we use a Jillian Michaels video, so I'm learning how to kick box! I got a new chair for my desk this week, because I have fallen over in it multiple times. One of the wheels was broken, so the weight made it fall over very easily.

This Wednesday we are getting something called Tiwis. They are a permanent backseat driver that talks to you and tells you to slow down. Lucky us! If we get three marks against us, we will have our driving privileges taken away...so wish me luck!

     Tonight we are going to the Visitor's Center with our investigator, Angel. He is on date to be baptized on the 13 of June, so please pray that he will be prepared. Another investigator we have is from El Salvador. She just escaped from her abusive husband and was taking lessons from missionaries there. She is so prepared, but she can't be baptized because she can only leave a mile radius from her house and the chapel is 1.8 miles away. It's really frustrating, but we wrote a letter to her parole officer so that she can leave for three hours every Sunday for church only. Please keep her in your prayers as well.

     We found this amazing family on Saturday night. We looked for Hispanic names on white pages and we found theirs. We knocked and they said that they have been looking for a church. Then they came to church yesterday and they are so excited to have us come over this week to teach them more. Maria, Cindi, and Liz are so cute and we are so excited about this family!

     At this point, 9 of our investigators are progressing and we plan to have 8 of them on date to be baptized at the end of the week. We are really seeing so many miracles every day and we know that the Lord is helping us. There is no other explanation. We are working so hard and literally loving every single minute! I love you and miss you all, please keep me in your prayers so that I can accomplish my goals that I have made. Have a wonderful week! 

Con Amor,

Hermana Moberly

Bella Vista

Sorry, this is going to be really short this week, we have had a super busy day, but mostly because we went and played tennis for a few hours and then completely rearranged our apartment.

So I have been transferred and I am in the Bella Vista ward in McLean Virginia. My new companion is Hermana Christensen and we are already best friends. We always knew that we would be companions at one point and it is finally here. We are the Sister Training Leaders for some of the other Spanish speaking missionaries in this area, which means we will be going on exchanges each week and going to lots of meetings and working really closely with President Riggs.

Thursday was a bittersweet day because I left the Sudley ward and Hermana Peabody, but I will be seeing her for exchanges in the near future.

This new companionship is going to be one of the best that I have had because she and I are on the same exact page. We are making a lot of changes from what the past missionaries did and we are working alongside the Bishop of the ward. I know that we are going to see so many miracles, and we already have seen some. I am so excited and happy that I am right here right now and there is no doubt in my mind that I need to be here.

Last transfer there were only 2 STLs, but this transfer we have 4. I was one of the new ones, but the other is Hermana Pettit, one of my past companions.

I know that this work is of God. He is in charge and I am where I am because He told my mission president that I need to be here. Each week I will be writing about the miracles that we see, so stay tuned. There just isn't enough time right now. I love you and miss you all!

Love always,

Hermana Moberly

Transfer and Sister Training Leader!

Hello Mommy and Papi :) 

I'm over here in Bella Vista as a Sister Training Leader with Hermana Christensen, just like I guessed ;) It's going to be a super fun transfer or two with her and I will be experiencing a lot of firsts! It's my first day of the mission without the twelve week program, with means one hour less in the house than usual. Along with lots of exchanges and meetings and training, but I'm so excited. This is my new address and companion! 

Love you, talk to you on Monday :)

Hermana Moberly

7310 Dartford Dr #9

McLean, VA 22102

Hermana's Christensen and Moberly

The Church Girls

May 11, 2015

           It’s been a pretty nice week :) I got to talk to my family yesterday and that was the best! It kind of feels like a dream, almost like it didn't even happen. That time went by way too fast.

Last week for Pday, we had a little district get together. We ate some sloppy joe's that Elder Randall made for us and then we played some soccer, basketball, and ultimate Frisbee. The basketball hoops were so low that I could almost dunk on them, so that was kind of fun :)

On Tuesday we had another mission conference. There is a story in the Bible that I heard of for the first time this week. It’s really the first 7 chapters of Nehemiah. He was an Israelite that was taken out of Jerusalem and served the King of Syria. He asked permission from the king to go back to Jerusalem to build the wall that had been destroyed. So he and a bunch of people went and worked on sections of the wall doing what they could. Despite all the threats they received and the fear that they had, they "had a great work to do so [they] cannot come down." This is the new mission phrase. We are building up the wall of the Washington DC South mission and no matter what happens around us, we will work on our section. Nehemiah and the men built the wall in 52 days, so on June 25th, 52 days after that conference (and a few days before President goes home) we will have another mission conference to see what we have done with that wall. It’s a little story hidden in the Old Testament, but there is so much that we can gain from it.

We are learning to be BOLD in all that we do. And we have already seen the miracles! I am not one who likes to go against the plans we have made the night before, but this week we did. There were a couple people that we had planned to see, but when I woke up that morning I was thing of 2 people specifically. So during the day, we went to go see them when usually we wouldn't find them. But on this day they were home and we finally had some good lessons with them. So that was me practicing being bold and going against the plans.

I have had a couple once in a lifetime experiences this week. The first one was on Thursday. We had just finished dinner with one of the members of the ward and we were walking out to the car. We were joking about getting some ice cream because the ice cream man was down the street. It was a little bit of a walk, but the truck pulls up next to us and the man asks if we spoke Spanish, of course we do. And he asked us if we could give him a copy of the book of Mormon. By this point we were super excited and started talking to him some more. Turns out he is a member of the church, not an investigator, but wanted a copy to read while he was working. So that was pretty weird, but really funny. Then on Saturday night we had a ward party for Mother's day. Of course they asked us, the missionaries, to sing. We don't know why they keep asking, because they don't like it that much, but they keep asking us! Anyways, after all Hispanic ward parties there is a dance, and there was a little 6 year old boy that came up to me and asked if I would go dance with him. It broke my heart that I had to say no to him! He was so adorable and brave and I just felt so bad. I have never wanted to dance so badly in my life until that night. The last one happened right after I Skyped with my family. We were walking out to the car and a two year old girl was running down the sidewalk to "her friend Rachel's house". We didn't see her family anywhere, so we just turned her around and started walking back to where she was coming from. She didn't remember her name or her parents’ names or anything so we just prayed as we walked. Soon enough a man came running towards us and was looking for his little girl. Apparently she escaped from the house, but he was so grateful for what we did. He wanted to pay us, but we wouldn't take it. He mentioned that his wife "used to be Mormon" and that the elders come over every once in a while. So I told him that the way he could pay us back is to listen to the elders the next time they came over. It’s just incredible to me how much our Father in Heaven loves every one of us. He put us there at that time to help this family and maybe this was what they need in order to come back to the church. His plan is perfect and I trust it. He knows what we need and when we need it.

Hna's Peabody, Moberly, and Pettit

I had a happy mothers day yesterday! I got a picture with both of my "daughters". We had a baptism in the ward and Hermana Pettit's companion taught her, so they came back for that. That's about all for this week, the rest I told my family. We have transfers this week, so I might be leaving Sudley on Thursday, but I will find out on Tuesday. If I do get transferred I will email my mom my new address and other information. I love you all and hope your week is as good or even better than mine will be! I know we are going to see so many miracles in the near future, so stay tuned :)

Love always,

 Hermana Moberly

Abby the Escapee

Peruvian Rice Pyramid

Just a 'small' piece of Tres Leches

May?

May 4, 2015

This week has been a fast one. I can't believe it’s already MAY! I don't know how that happened, it feels like it should still be March. 

We have had a few meetings this week. We have district meeting every week, so nothing new there, but we also had a Sisters meeting. All of the sisters in the Washington DC South mission all got together for some lunch and some training :) It was so fun! We brought out our patriarchal blessings and found all of the things we have been blessed with-I never knew how much it said! It was incredible :) So if you have one, go and list all the blessings it states, it’s so cool! Then we had some motivating talks on not having to be perfect and trying our best and being happy with it because the Lord is happy with it. You know, things that most girls need to hear. President Riggs is the best, not even kidding!

That night we went to talk with Martha, our most recent investigator preparing for baptism, but she wasn't there, so we played a little bit of soccer with her kids and taught the rest of the family :) 

The Torres family is doing so well! We met with them on Monday and Wednesday and it went really well! Orlando was asking us some questions about Native Americans and the Amish, so that was kind of weird and we didn't know any of the answers, but we read with them in The Book of Mormon and he loved it. Then on Wednesday he wasn't home, but we talked to his wife and the three little boys. We played the plan of salvation game that I made and they loved it :) They all want to get baptized, but especially the 7 year old, which is sad because he will have to wait until September. They are so cute! At the end when we were praying, one of them said, "I don't need anything from you because I'm happy with everything that I have right now in my life!" and then the youngest one said, "I want a little sister". We were dying because it was so adorable. I love that family so much!

More names to add to the praying list: Reyna and Jackie! They are two young girls (13 and 15) and we taught the entire first lesson about the Restoration. They liked it and committed to read the Book of Mormon and ask if it was true. Rather than most investigators who say they will do it, but you can see in their eyes that they won't, they were sincere and very interested. I am excited about them because they are motivated and want to know more :)

We had 3 investigators promise us that they would come to church this Sunday, but they didn't show up :( That's always really sad. They are progressing in so many ways, but when it comes to going to church they don't want to use that time. I wish that they would understand how important it is, but that testimony only comes when you try it. It’s pretty frustrating, but there isn't much we can do. We can teach them and provide the Spirit to testify to them, but if they don't let it in their heart, nothing comes from it.

We got a new investigator last night because the Salazar family invited a friend over for a Family Night and she should be coming to church this Sunday. The investigators that the members find for us are the ones that progress faster and get baptized. It is so much better than the ones we find on our own. I was listening to a conference talk and one of the apostles was saying that missionaries are called to teach, but often they are spending most of their time finding. The members have the calling to find people to teach so that the missionaries can teach more than they find. Just something to think about ;)

I love this calling that I have. I am so lucky to share the gospel with the people here in this part of the world. I literally cannot think of anything better that I could be doing. I am so lucky! Thank you for all of your prayers, I can feel the strength that they give me. You are all the best and I love and miss you! Please find people for the missionaries to teach :)

Love always,

 Hermana Moberly