Sister Baby

Monday, May 6, 2013

May 6 2013

Wow........... Daduhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. I don't even know what to say to you. I'm just so grateful. It was a hard, hard, hard past few days but it was a miracle that I just happened to be at the mission office (i go there maybe once every 6 weeks) so that I could get your letter. Sister Evans called me on Thursday and (I think) she told me everything, but all I heard was that you had an emergancy heart opporation. I didn't comprehend anything else and I was kind of a wreck, so I was so grateful for your email that explained everything. I was especially going crazy because of the dreams I had had and all my spiritual experiences that I had been having with the plan of salvation lately.. like I felt like Heavenly Father was preparing me for something. I had the thought come to my mind a lot (before all this happened) "what would I do at this point in my mission if one of my parents passed away would I stay, or go home?" Also it is exactly.. to the week, that Sister Shurtz sister passed away and in my dream, she was comforting me. In the meeting we were in right before I got your letter, we sang 'come come ye saints,' the song that I flipped open and started singing after my dream a few weeks ago. I cried through the whole thing in the meeting... it was embarassing. Before the meeting too I saw sister Ellsworth whisper to President Ellsworth as she was looking at me "we will tell her after the meeting." Not cool. Later that day we went to the VC and walked in on sister larson and sister weber practicing testifying after a mormon message called, "hope ya know, i had a hard time" by elder cook. After we watched the short video, Sister Larson was pretending to testify to "lupita" and she said all the things that I needed to hear... that there are angels round about me to bear me up. Things like that happened all day. Heavenly Father took care of me.

I'm just so grateful for a God of miracles and that you're okay. We taught Jorge- an investigator that has a date for the 18th. He's really frustrating because we always talk in circles and he always says that you don't need a religion to be a good person. In this lesson he had brought his little 6 year old daughter. The whole lesson was a big argument and he wasn't understanding anything... I asked him what he wanted for his little girl when he grew up.. he said.. I just don't want her to end up in jail. He is divorced and the mom is catholic so he said he didn't want to confuse her either with this religion. After we said amen with the closing prayer I thought and then said, "listen jorge, i'm going to tell you something... this week I almost lost my dad. Even though I don't know for sure if he'll be okay, i will always be grateful to him for teaching me the gospel of Jesus Christ and the knowledge and example that he has been for me. Now I look at your little girl and she needs that same example... she needs to know the truth and it's YOUR responsibility okay?" He just sat there. We got up and walked away and as we left we invited him and his daughter to come into the visitor center that night because we were going to be working there till 9pm. At 8:50 I am walkin passed the front window and I see Jorge with a button up nice shirt and slacks and his little girl in a dress wanting to hear the Christus before we closed. It was a tender mercy and brought joy to me knowing that he wants his little girl to learn the truth too. Thank you. I think this all gives us reminders to always live today as if you were to meet your maker tomorrow. Although this was a really hard thing for me.. and for all of us.. it has strenghtened my testimony... thank you for always increasing my testimony even when you don't know it. You lead by example and I really admire that about you. I'm so grateful that i get to come home to a mom and a dad. Especially to go see the Red Sox too haha. No one can deny that the Lords hand wasn't in this. Love you so much. That is so cool that you got my flight information already. We will go walking for 45 min everyday when i get home okay? And I will tell you about all the times I beat up the Elders in zone sports on my mission. And we will go pick vegetables out of your garden.. and then eat them... and you'll like it. I will see you in just a few short weeks! Don't worry about me worrying either. Everything will be okay. "All is well" Take good care of yourself.. you're not done here, I still need you and so does mom and everyone else. So stop scaring us, okay? Just get better and take it slow. "Don't take any chances"

Love you,

"Seek for the Eternal"

Hermana Baby

May 6, 2013

Monday, April 29, 2013

April 29, 2013- So busy!

Hola Familiares,

It's been a surprisingly smooth-ish week! It's been so much fun to ge back with Hermana Valladares and having a new area. She has whitewashed an area before so she kinda knows what she's doing. We got a new apartment and a new car and new supplies and everything. We we soooooooo blessed to find Cesi Morales.. a resent convert who LOVES sharing the gospel with everyone who comes in contact with her. We were blessed to find 8 new investigators our first night in the area because of her. We will also have a baptism on the 18th, Jorge Godinez :) Hermana Larson actually taught him in a different ward and he moved to ours! We are exciting for him. Also another cool thing is that Andy- the 16 year old miricle kid I told everyone about last week... yeah, my DISTRICT leader is the one that is teaching him... meaning he's in my stake... meaning I can go to his baptism probably! So cool. One of our new (now dropped) investigators is named "Muñeca" meaning doll or dolly in Spanish. She is straight out of a tv show. She opens the door with nothing but an oversized elvis shirt on... did I mention she's like 75? My eyes burned a little... not just because she wasn't wearing hardly anything, but bless her heart, she's a horder. There was only one little tiny path to get to her kitchin in the midst of THOUSANDS of pictures and ornaments and "stufffffffffffffffffffff" everywhere... piles and piles... you cant imagine. She talked our ears off and wouldn't let us say two words. I feel really bad for her, she's alone and needs people to talk to. We had to keep our scheldule though so finally we inturrupted her and said, "you have to let us talk when we come over Muñeca!" she said okay and then started talking a million miles an hour again. We tried a different reproach the next time we talked to her. We sang! She loved it and felt the spirit.. but she is really stuborn and keps saying she's Catholic. We'll see. She kept inturrupting the member in her prayer and said, "no, you have to start over and pray for my daughter" I was holding my nose because I was laughing so hard. We found a family with like 6 people who are soooo ready to hear the gospel. The aunt that lives with them has cancer and no hair they all are going through hard things and cried during the prayer. I know Heavenly Father has prepared them to hear the message. Sister V and I both like to sing in our lessons so we've been doing it alot and we've seen so many blessings and miracles. We made the RS pres cry last night when we went to visit her.. brownie points with the ward :) I've had many spiritual experiences this week that i'm so grateful for. It's been a transistion for me because we are working SOOO much with members and sacrificing time to visit everyone... it's what the ward needs though. We have parts in our area that are really "ritzy" We eat with the english wards 15 days of the month and their houses are HUGE and beautiful. I don't think I have felt like I needed to take off my shoes in a house my whole mission until now. It's weird. I have been so blessed to work with such humble people that are happy with what they have I love it. Yesterday in church we sang "count your many blessings"... not my pick, but it's a good song. We did it to get our faces up there.. which wasn't completely needed because the bishop said to Hermana Valladares that she was baring her testimony in sacrament. Did i even say this? We split the area with two sisters that were aready working in the ward. Hermana Christiansen and Reyburn. I came out with Hermana Christiansen but she has one more transfer left than me because she's not a VC sister... actually I think she just choose, but i'm not sure. Anyway, they have helped us alot. So it's been good! I'm excited to know more about my responsisbilities with my new assignment. We have a meeting with all the leaders in the mission on Friday so that should be good. Anyway... love you all! Read Helaman 3:35... this scripture has brought me so much strengh!

SFTE

Hermana Cottrell