Friday, March 29, 2013
Pres & Sister White -March 29, 2013
Thursday, March 28, 2013
Monday, March 25, 2013
EASTER PAGEANT IS UNDERWAY! 3-25-13
Hola Chamacas
Well I pretty much lost my journal for the entire week so this might be short because I can't remember much. But the Easter Pageant has been sooooo awesome! It's even more amazing than when I remember it from last year. It's a little hard with so many new sisters that don't know what they are doing though... For that I think our numbers are a tad down.. but just a tad. This week we will have tons and tons of people. We are on a different schedule we go to bed at 1130 and wake up at 730... man.. throws me off. I think I got 3 hours of sleep last night. Okay so Friday AND Saturday, the actor of "Jesus" (who I role played with in a meeting and is so humble and nice) got bucked off the mule!!! In the performance. Poor guy.. he's alright though. I laughed just because with his white robe in the air it looked like he was flying, but he was fine. It was funny and he even thought it was funny.. he just got back up and kept goin! The show must go on.
Every night we have a "nightly focus" using a principal or somehting in the VC to highlight to all of our visitors. I gave the nightly focus to all the sisters on our new art exhibit. It's called "the Redeemer" - which means to deliver. I didn't know why we were choosing this on a SPANISH night because the invitations to the exhibit are in english... but as I was studying for this I read, "teach them that redemtion comeith through Christ the Lord." Nuf said.. that's what I needed to talk about! Anyway... I told everyone that all the people that we were going to talk to are literally our brothers and sisters and we knew them and if we could see one of our siblings that we love so much falling we would want to "deliver" them and help them. It changes missionary work and changes all the charity you have for people when you think of it that way. It was cool to use the invitations throughout the night after that. I talked to a guy named Anthony. He's a "drifter" and homeless but I looked at him as one of my brothers that was falling and everything changed. I talked to him for a while even though there were people speaking spanish around me (because anthony doesn't speak spanish) that hadn't been talked to. He told me that he believes that the trinity is 3 different people as well and he's read the BofM and knows that Joseph Smith was a true prophet but that he doesn't belong to any church or domination because he thinks thats the way it should be. I told him if the BofM is true, JS is a prophet and if he was a prophet, then everything else is true too and Jesus Christs church is on the earth again today. He thought and then said, "you're right" I told him he needed to go to church and he said, "you know, I think I need that. I think that's whats missing in my life. I told him I would teach him at the VC since I can't send the missionaries. He came the next day (Sunday) I taught him the Restoration and he went to church right after the lesson and wants to be baptized! Miracle! I gave him an invite and said, "everytime you see this picutre of chirst you remember that he's been through everything you're going through" He thanked me for talking to him and was really touched as he said, "no one ever talks to me... I really appreciate it.. it feels nice to talk to someone" It makes me think of a story I heard once when a couple was driving down the road and stopped at a stop light and the guy next to them was in a big truck and the guy looked really scary and the lady said, "ya know... that guy was once someones baby boy"
Anyway... lots of miracles always. I'm so grateful to be here. Words cant even tell! I'm loving it even though i'm so tired I could cry. Instead of a chapter.. i invite everyone to look at your neighbors as your brothers and sisters. We say Brother and Sister in the church so casually.. but think about what that really means.
Love you all,
Hermana Cottrell
SFTE
Monday, March 18, 2013
Pictures 3-18-13
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| Ward threw a farewell party for me! |
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| 1st sunburn of the year! |
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| I know how to make tortillas now! |
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| Me and Hermana Weber |
Crazy Busy week! 3-18-2013
Hey Family!
So it's been a CRAZY busy week. My new assignment in the VC is the "Administrative Assistant" (basically the secretary of the VC) man.... LOTS of work. I feel like my work load has tripled, but it helps me focus, so it's good! We are about ready for the Easter Pageant. The Rehearsal is tomorrow night and then it starts wednesday! Ah! We're so excited. I've been doing a lot of "demonstrating" for the new sisters which has been fun. We had a service project today where we woke up early and washed all the walls and baseboards in the VC to get ready.
I ADORE my new companion. She's only been out for two transfers and she's AMAZING. She talks to everyone and she's so smart about using time wisely and works soooo hard! It's so good too because she is just barely learning English so I have to speak Spanish 24/7... I've already learned a lot in just a week. But I've been able to help her with her English too which is good. She's such a good missionary.
So on Sunday one of the lady's in our ward said she wanted to do an FHE and said we could come. So I said great and that we would bring our investigators. We dorove up and there were people EVERYWHERE! And tables in front of the house. ... The ward threw me a going away party. I wanted to cry! The bishops wife said some really nice things and I gave a spiritual thought about missionary work. That... was something i'll never forget. The 5 transfers in Liahona 1st was all worth it. I love those people so much. The Nunez family did a little dinner for me and the other elder that was leaving too, which was really fun. Also Hermana Mora gave me a present with a scarf she knitted at the RS activity she said, "every time you wear this... remember me..please please please don't forget me." So sweet.
We had Sister Javed with us from Pakistan (she goes home next transfer) so we were in a trio for a couple days.. but she is the most christlike person I know... we have become really good friends.
Since our area is right by the temple.. we have soooooooooooooooooooo many referrals and work to do. We have 3 baptisms on the 30th and one in the second week in April. One of them is named Juan. He is so special. He said he had a dream the other night that someone knocked on his door and two people came and they had dark hoods on and they wanted him to come with them so he went and grabbed a picture of Jesus and the Book of Mormon!! and said NO! Even with the short time that i've been here, I have seen his faith grow so much. He's going to get married this week and then baptized the next :) The funny thing is, I talked to a missionary that tried teaching him like a year ago and she said he would have nothing to do with the church BUT it was just part of God preparing his heart to accept it later. That's why we talk to EVERYONE even though it's hard when they reject us sometimes. The other baptism is another family that is progressing really fast and another one is a YSA that has so many friends in the ward. Actually, Sister Sordes baptized his cousin right before I was companions with her and I am really good friends with him and he helped us a lot with missionary work. Not a coincidence :) I came in at a good time. We have a goal of contacting 20 referrals next week...and we have the Easter pageant.. we're gonna drop dead... but we're gonna DO IT! I'm excited. I live with Sister Larson and Aquino too and that has been a blast! Sister Larson and I get up every morning and run 3+ miles and we are going to start to run on pdays and get ready for a race for when we get home. She's really a good runner and use to do races so she's patient with me, but i'm getting the hang of it.
Anyway, life is good :) I'm loving it and i'm soooooo happily exhausted... but i had a cool experience. During lunch I decided to take a quick nap instead of eating and then I couldn't because I was thinking about all the things that I needed to do so I knelt down and said, "heavenly Father if you give me energy i will work sooo hard because i know you want me too" Guess what? as I was walking up the stairs i started running and I had so much energy the rest of the day. Prayer works :)
The Chapter is ether 4 today
SFTE
Love,
Hermana Cottrell
Monday, March 11, 2013
Changes! Mar 11, 2013
amily!!
First- the rules have changed! I get to email whoever I want! Friends, family, recent converts ect. AND we get an hour and a half instead of an hour! YAY! Everyone email me and update me!
Second- I'm getting transfered! I am going to Liahona 3 right by the temple.. like RIGHT next to it. We walk to the temple. AND guess who the other companionship in the house is??? Hermana Larson! yay! I guess if we can't be companions again, this is the next best thing. My companion will be Hermana Weber from Mexi-cali. She doesn't speak too much english, which i'm really excited about so I can learn a lot. She just finished getting trained so I will be her greenie braker.. that'll be fun. I'll still be on bike which is fine, but i'll be in the VC for most of the day anyway. The mission gave me a different bike because my tire exploded last week. I have a cute little basket now... which i'm a big fan of. Anyway.. Hermana Newton will be training! Along with the other half of the mission. There are soooo many coming. 1/3 of the mission is training or being triained they said. Awesome.
We had a lesson with some less actives at the vc and Hna Newton told them a story about when we needed to go to a lesson but my sinus's were hurting to the point where I was crying and I decided to go to the lesson anyway. During the lesson, the pain completely went away! And after it came back a little, but we talked about sacrifice and having faith when you sacrifice and guess what? They came to church! That was the first time in months.
Agustin passed the sacrament! He was so excited :) I didn't get to see it though because Ana called me right when sacrament started saying that she had came! So that was bittersweet.
The 6th was a year in AZ! Sister Ellsworth (pres ellsworth's wife) came to a lesson with us.. she's learning spanish so she wants to go out with the spanish missionaries to learn and she does such a good job! We had a lesson with Judy and she is SO close to being baptized. I see the change in her eyes and i'm so excited for her and Richard. I will have to come back for the baptism.
I have started FREE physical theropy for my back and my ankle which is going good.. we'll see how long I gotta do it but the guy is LDS so he doesn't make us pay anything. On of the asistance is a girl that is one of the ten virgins in the easter pageant! The next time I went in, her sister took care of me instead of her and I ALMOST asked her "OH, are you a virgen too?" Bad idea. We keep having to catch ourselves when we talk about the easter pageant and the 10 virgens! They are all such good dancers. .....:/ The pageant will start on the 20th and go to the 30th. We met with the cast the other day and practiced with them because before the pageant they all come out and talk to the people in the audience and invite them to go into the visitor center. There's going to be so many people. Go on Facebook and 'like' it. Apparently they have there own facebook page and there is a picutre of me on there with some other sisters.
We went to the temple this week and it was amazing! I love learning and entering the temple as an agent instead of an object, like Elder Bednar says. In the celestial room I was talking to a sister that is about to go home tomorrow- she has become a really good friend. But we were talking about our missions and she said something that she heard and I really liked it. She said being on a mission is like being on a airplane. you can see SO much of the big picutre that Heavenly Father sees. But it's up to you to remember what the picture is when you step off the plane. That's why I have like 5 journals that i have kept up with haha.
After the temple we went to a zone meeting and talked alot about planning. It was cool when they were talking about planning they related it to Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. My mind started goin. They are perfect planners but it makes sense that they probably planned with a pencil like us because we have our agency and they write in lots of back-ups because we doen't always follow their plan (like our investigators) or we don't do the things we commit to. Maybe that doesn't make sense to people who haven't used the missionary agenda- but it turned on a light bulb with me. We truly are Gods investigators.
Monday, March 4, 2013
Decisions- 3-4-13
Hello Family...
Crazy week. So it started off last pday and we went and played mini golf with our zone and after we watched 17 miracles. That movie drains me emotionally. During the movie I got a call from President Ellsworth. He said, "i'm calling because you asked me about extending your mission" I said, "I did?" He said "oops" I asked him to tell me what he was going to say anyway and he said that I would be welcome to do it because with all the changes, he wouldn't need permission from SLC for me to do it. That..... threw me off. I knew something would happen like that because in my setting apart, the stake president said, "I will use this blessing as scripture and I wont go home until I hear, "well done my faithful servant" deep breath. I then found out that like 3 other people were extending. I was really upset about it for a few days, but after praying I made a decision and I have felt peace about it. I have felt like the Lord doesn't need me.. I always knew that but I feel like there are so many amazing, prepared missionaries that can take over just fine. There are 8 new vc sisters coming in June.. I don't know who's going to train them all- Sister Beckstrand interviewed me and said that there is no pressure but they would take advantage of my leadership. As of now i will be coming home June 4th unless I feel otherwise, but I really want to continue to feel peace about my decision and not have any regrets. I know Satan will try and confuse me, but I know I will be serving the Lord the rest of my life where ever I am so anyways... Thank you all so much for all your prayers and fasting it really helped me more than you know!
Okay so what else happened? We had zone conference and they showed us a slide show of the new mission president. They look really cute.. even though he wont be my mission pres. I can't believe transfers are next week! Pres said that everyones eyebrows are going to be raised and we're gonna say, "why the heck did he do that?"... we'll see. Ha.. I might have 2 areas my whole mission. I wouldn't mind changing. I have grown to really love the people in Liahona 1st. I honestly still don't know why I got sent back because any other missionary could have done what I have done here, but maybe i just needed to have these experiences for myself.
We are getting ready for easter pageant! I hope they put me back in the vc next transfer. They had their own "restoration" there. After a long time, a lot of the rules got switched and changed (apostasy) and then last transfer they just went completely back to the way all the rules are written. That being said, all my pdays will be mondays and we will be in the vc for 6 hours everyday instead of 3. We got a new exhibit too.. i don't know anything about it though.
We set a date for Judy and her son to get baptized this Saturday.. which I really wanted to happen if I end up leaving the area.. but I didn't feel right about it. she's dating her exhusband again and I don't see the change in her yet. I don't think she's been honest with us. We'll see what happens.
On a brighter note.. Agustin got the priesthood! YAY! I wanted to cry. He will pass the sacrament next sunday. Not only that, but he had a friend move in with him named Miguel. And Agustin introduced him to us. Last night we went to the Fireside where recent converts bare there testimonies and we sing. Agustin and Miguel came and Miguel said to me after, "I wanted to get up there and bare my testimony too, can I?" I said, "Miguel, we gotta get you baptized first!" He... looks pretty promising. He just says weird stuff like in church he's like... "when are we going to wash each others feet? That's what Jesus did!"
We had a lesson with Ana and we walked in and she had a big black and blue eye.. from the guy she's living with. Broke my heart. I almost beat him up and stole all the beer that was left over.. I was so mad. She's moving out today. Good. but I hope she's still in our area.
Anyway.. that's the week. Love you all. Thank you again for fasting and praying.
Love,
Hermana Cottrell
Moroni 7
SFTE
Saturday, March 2, 2013
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