10:11 AM (35 minutes ago)
 |
Hello Family!
Probably gonna be a short letter this week. We've been really busy. We were supposed to have a baptism on Saturday for Ramiro but apparently he came to the states illegally and needed to go back to Mexico. Nice.
We had a really really good time with Dora and Salvador and their two kids Paulo and Oliver. We had a lesson at the VC. We were sitting infront of the Crisus and all Salvador was doing is searching through Sister Fors bible to make sure it was the same one he believes in. We went through Gods plan after that and I've never seen someones countenance change so drastically. He started to cry and his heart was softened. Usually we meet with them once a week but they wanted to meet the next day. I started talking to Dora alone and she said, "there's just a different feeling"- We have high hopes for them. Sister Fors and I are trying to get an English class going in our ward. It's amazing how many doors have been opened with that. Even if people aren't interested in hearing our message, everyone is interested in learning English for free. It will help me a lot with my spanish too I think.
I sang in sacrament with two other Elders yesterday! The missionaries were in charge of the sacrament so Sister Fors and Elder Samuels spoke and we sang. It was really good because spanish wards never have musical numbers. We also had the opportunity to teach the YW. It was on sustaining the priesthood. I think the leaders just didn't know how to teach it so they gave it to us. It was really good though. We had them write down the qualities they want in a future husband and I told them I still have my list from YW and to never settle but that we need to become everything on that list too. Mostly the message was that we have more influence on guys than we think in helping them live up to their priesthood responsibilities. They really liked it. They liked all my dating stories too. I learned a lot about humility yesterday. Spanish has been a struggle, but I've never been so diligent or worked so hard on anything more in my life. But I had a guy in the ward (with good intentions) tell me yesterday at church that I need to work harder. That was really hard to hear. Satan really makes you think that you'll never be good enough. But I know I'm doing my very best. I have been trying to tell every little kid that they are a child of God. and that Heavenly Father loves them. It's amazing the responses that I get. The most crazy kids immediately calm down and just smile at me. Even if the parents aren't interested in listening to me, I like to talk to the kids more anyway. Last night there was a really shy girl that wouldn't talk to me. After I told her that she is a daughter of God, her face lit up and she gave me her sticker off her shirt.
There is a girl in my zone that just found out that someone in her family passed away. Pray for her, okay?
Oh, one more quick story- We went to an Easter pageant refurral named Antonia. She kept staring at me and saying that she knew me from somewhere. I knew I had never seen her before. We joked that maybe we knew each other in heaven. All the sudden I looked at her in a completely different way. I remembered one of the reasons why I came on a mission. I feel like I told people in heaven, "I'll come find you" The words in my mind came, "Antonia, I'll come find you, I promise" In Alma 13:27 talks about the anxiety and pain we should feel for peoples repentance and I have been wanting to feel like that so that I can bare a stronger testimony. I was able to feel that for her as I looked at her as my sister. I was able to bare a really strong testimony and be really bold. Preach My Gospel says that the gospel will have a familiar "ring" to them. I was familiar to her and the message was as well. It was a cool experience.
Serve everyone! We have been teaching our members that OUR job is to teach lessons, but the most important thing that members can do is befriend nonmembers and serve them. A lot of members thing they have to give out a Book of Mormon to share the gospel, but almost always it is more effective to love them and befriend them first. We have asked members who come with us to come in casual clothes instead of dress up. This shows that they are normal people just like them and they are more comfortable. This has made all the difference. So I challenge everyone to brake out of your exclusive LDS friends and see what miracles can happen.
The chapter this week is Helaman 5
Love you all :)
SFTE
Love, Sister Cottrell
Probably gonna be a short letter this week. We've been really busy. We were supposed to have a baptism on Saturday for Ramiro but apparently he came to the states illegally and needed to go back to Mexico. Nice.
We had a really really good time with Dora and Salvador and their two kids Paulo and Oliver. We had a lesson at the VC. We were sitting infront of the Crisus and all Salvador was doing is searching through Sister Fors bible to make sure it was the same one he believes in. We went through Gods plan after that and I've never seen someones countenance change so drastically. He started to cry and his heart was softened. Usually we meet with them once a week but they wanted to meet the next day. I started talking to Dora alone and she said, "there's just a different feeling"- We have high hopes for them. Sister Fors and I are trying to get an English class going in our ward. It's amazing how many doors have been opened with that. Even if people aren't interested in hearing our message, everyone is interested in learning English for free. It will help me a lot with my spanish too I think.
I sang in sacrament with two other Elders yesterday! The missionaries were in charge of the sacrament so Sister Fors and Elder Samuels spoke and we sang. It was really good because spanish wards never have musical numbers. We also had the opportunity to teach the YW. It was on sustaining the priesthood. I think the leaders just didn't know how to teach it so they gave it to us. It was really good though. We had them write down the qualities they want in a future husband and I told them I still have my list from YW and to never settle but that we need to become everything on that list too. Mostly the message was that we have more influence on guys than we think in helping them live up to their priesthood responsibilities. They really liked it. They liked all my dating stories too. I learned a lot about humility yesterday. Spanish has been a struggle, but I've never been so diligent or worked so hard on anything more in my life. But I had a guy in the ward (with good intentions) tell me yesterday at church that I need to work harder. That was really hard to hear. Satan really makes you think that you'll never be good enough. But I know I'm doing my very best. I have been trying to tell every little kid that they are a child of God. and that Heavenly Father loves them. It's amazing the responses that I get. The most crazy kids immediately calm down and just smile at me. Even if the parents aren't interested in listening to me, I like to talk to the kids more anyway. Last night there was a really shy girl that wouldn't talk to me. After I told her that she is a daughter of God, her face lit up and she gave me her sticker off her shirt.
There is a girl in my zone that just found out that someone in her family passed away. Pray for her, okay?
Oh, one more quick story- We went to an Easter pageant refurral named Antonia. She kept staring at me and saying that she knew me from somewhere. I knew I had never seen her before. We joked that maybe we knew each other in heaven. All the sudden I looked at her in a completely different way. I remembered one of the reasons why I came on a mission. I feel like I told people in heaven, "I'll come find you" The words in my mind came, "Antonia, I'll come find you, I promise" In Alma 13:27 talks about the anxiety and pain we should feel for peoples repentance and I have been wanting to feel like that so that I can bare a stronger testimony. I was able to feel that for her as I looked at her as my sister. I was able to bare a really strong testimony and be really bold. Preach My Gospel says that the gospel will have a familiar "ring" to them. I was familiar to her and the message was as well. It was a cool experience.
Serve everyone! We have been teaching our members that OUR job is to teach lessons, but the most important thing that members can do is befriend nonmembers and serve them. A lot of members thing they have to give out a Book of Mormon to share the gospel, but almost always it is more effective to love them and befriend them first. We have asked members who come with us to come in casual clothes instead of dress up. This shows that they are normal people just like them and they are more comfortable. This has made all the difference. So I challenge everyone to brake out of your exclusive LDS friends and see what miracles can happen.
The chapter this week is Helaman 5
Love you all :)
SFTE
Love, Sister Cottrell
No comments:
Post a Comment