It's a holiday so the libraries are closed. And the Family History Center is closed for carpet cleaning. So here we are. Again.
I forgot my planner in the car so.....let's see what happened this week.
The Ramirez family had their baptismal interviews! They're all set to get baptized on Sunday! Their dad also received the Aaronic Priesthood so he can baptize them! It was really cool to watch his ordination with all of his kids. His wife had to work, but she'll be there for the baptism! And they've requested Sundays off of work so they'll be there EVERY week!
Another really cool story about Sister Ramirez - they all went to a baptismal service on Saturday as a family and it was an awesome experience. We found her records but she still couldn't remember her baptism and she's been praying and praying to remember it. During the baptism, she remembered her baptism! She felt the Spirit so strong and she was crying. It was so amazing. She has such a strong testimony, and understands the doctrine so well. We taught them a lot this week, like always, and they're just so great. So great.
We also started teaching one of their family members! His name is Luis, and he's the son of Sister Ramirez' sister Irma who originally referred us to them! We've been knocking on Irma's door to invite her to the baptism, but she's never been home. But Luis answered the door once and said he just randomly started going to Catholic church because he felt like he needed God in his life. We've taught him about Joseph Smith and the Word of Wisdom - he's going to live the Word of Wisdom and already has a baptism date for February 16th! We met a few more of their family members too, but all of Sister Ramirez' sisters are really Christian so they didn't quite listen, but their kids all did. Most of them won't let their kids learn right now, but they should all be coming to the baptism and they'll change their minds!
We didn't see the Sanchez family this week because they've had some things going on. A good friend's boyfriend passed away and Lizeth wanted us to visit her, but she lives in San Francisco so we can't. Hugo's also been sick so none of them came to church. But Hugo let us know that he actually is planning on proposing! We couldn't figure out why he wouldn't marry her, but sounds like everything's in the work. His biggest concern is just that he wants some of his family to be here, but they all live in Mexico. One of his brothers might be coming out after Valentine's Day, so they might be able to get married and baptized before the end of the transfer! It would be such a miracle to see that! I've been working with them since August and I love them so much. Hugo IS changing - he's reading the Book of Mormon and praying and everything! He's so great. I'll be able to see their wedding and baptism and then in a year, I'll be able to come back to see them get sealed in the temple!!!
VC miracles of the week: Two full-proselyting sisters in Oakland came with a member to the VC because they had an appointment with someone they met in the street. They had confirmed with her and she told them that she got a babysitter and everything so she could come to the VC. They waited for her for about 15 minutes and couldn't get a hold of her. They were about to leave when Elder Lavender, one of the senior missionaries at the VC, came to get them. Apparently, a group of 5 refugees from Sri Lanka had come in 30 minutes earlier. These same sisters had given these guys a Visitors' Center pass-along card and they had walked TWO HOURS to get there. The sisters went to the back with their member, and they were able to have a member-present lesson AND five new investigators. It was amazing. You can't ever tell where a little invitation might lead. These sisters got to see their quickly planted seeds grow and God put them in the right place TWO times, and the Spirit brought them all up there together. It was a miracle.
Sister Ayala and I got to be a part of the next miracle. Two Spanish people came in last night to the VC. They didn't say much but we showed them around a bit. They said they had never been there before, but they ended up telling us that they were less active members! The woman, Mari Cruz, worked on Sundays but just lost her job and her husband Apner doesn't work on Sundays. I'm not sure why they went less active, but they were led back to the Visitors' Center. They had gone out driving and Mari Cruz felt prompted to come up to the VC. Our conversation started off quiet and a little awkward, but we kept with them and they ended up opening up to us. What's more, we found out that they live in our ward boundaries. This sister just told us all of the bad things going on in her family - her son gets drunk and hits his girlfriend, her daughter is pregnant and very sick with two other kids and her husband is in jail....this whole family just needs the gospel SO bad. And she knew that. They all live in the same apartment complex and we're so grateful and humbled to help them.
The VC is so great. The area is so great. The ward is so great. The area is so great. The mission is so great.
Hermana Hunsaker
Tuesday, January 21, 2014
Tuesday, January 14, 2014
100% church attendance!
No, that's not for our ward. But 100% of our investigators came to church! We had an AWESOME lesson with the Sanchez family this week about the 2000 Stripling Warriors and how the example of the covenants that the fathers made to bury their weapons in the earth affected the faith and success of their children. I was studying the morning before this lesson and I had NO idea what to do. We were planning on dropping them if they didn't commit to come to church and I just had no idea how to help them have the desire to come. But I opened up the Book of Mormon right to Alma 24 that talks about the Anti-Nephi-Lehites. My prayers aren't usually answered that way, but it was a miracle that I needed. Hugo understood the entire story and committed to bring the kids to church even though Lizeth had to work in the morning. He showed up, went to all the classes, and then Lizeth got off work in time to make it to Relief Society at the end of the three-hour block! And she changed into a skirt!
I didn't even talk about last week's church miracle. The Ramirez family all came to church again because their parents didn't have to work. We saw them the night before and started a fast with them so they could know if they needed to be baptized and to resolve some of their individual questions. After church, we walked around the temple terrace and invited them to be baptized. This time they said yes, without any hesitation, and we set the date for January 26th! This is their third date, and they're going to make it! Antonio totally received his answer to his doubts about living prophets during his Sunday School class and is super stoked to get baptized.
They came again yesterday, and walked in by themselves because they were a little late and Sister Ayala and I were up on the stand translating. During Sunday School, Brother Ramirez had a interview with the Bishop and Bishop said that he'll be able to baptize his kids on the 26th! It's such a miracle and we're just so so so excited for them. We also found out that Sister Ramirez IS a member. She's been praying to remember her baptism and it's slowly starting to come back to her!
We dropped the Romero family this week. They were doing so awesome, and we had a GREAT lesson with them about eternal marriage and how the gospel will help them fix their marriage last Saturday night. They said they were going to be at church, and they didn't show up. We gave them one more chance to meet us at the VC this week but they stopped responding to our calls and texts. Sometimes, you do all you can as a missionary and it's not enough because it's still not the time. But they'll be ready the next time missionaries knock on their door :)
We have a lot of potential investigators that we met the past couple of weeks, and we're excited to have time to see them this week! We met Guadalupe and Jose at a bus stop - we were on our way to contact in the area of our investigators and we saw them and almost immediately pulled over. Then in order to not look super creepy, we walked past them and around the block to get back to our car, and we found Jose and Miguel standing out on their apartment balcony. We had taught someone else in that apartment complex earlier and we knew that everyone spoke Spanish but the gate is ALWAYS locked. We had an awkward conversation with Jose as he stood up on the balcony, and Miguel came down to talk to us. No one in this apartment complex has a religion and they're ALL related to each other in some way. We're going to baptism the entire complex. We're super excited. We also met Juana - and that was a miracle too. She lives in an apartment complex of latinos in Berkeley that's been picked over probably more than a dozen times by other missionaries. We knocked on a lot of doors with people who really weren't interested, but we found her. She said that she's never home and the gate is never opened so she knows that this didn't just happen by coincidence. She works a lot, but she's ready to learn and change!
As for our awesome English contact this week, her name is Grace. We just started talking to her because she was wearing cool elephant earrings and then she needed directions. She just moved here from Wyoming and is looking for a place to stay right now, but she's just awesome. She grew up going to church and she wants to find a church again to find more guidance and direction in her life. We testified of the restoration and how she'll feel at home as she attends our church. The Berkeley Singles sisters are going to teach her. It's going to be awesome!
And a couple cool VC experiences: We had two awesome families come to the VC on New Year's Day. Jacqueline brought her husband and two daughters. They had a big fight that morning, but they watched God's Plan and they want to have more peace in their family through the gospel! Also, Cesar and Marta brought their good friends Patricia and Javier who were visiting from Mexico. They all had AWESOME questions and totally understand the restoration! And one of the first questions they asked was if we believed that God and Jesus Christ and the Holy Ghost were three separate people. They've always been confused by that and they believe that they are separate beings! After trying to say goodbye to them five or six times, they finally left saying that if they didn't leave at that moment, they'd be there all night asking questions. They're totally going to be baptized!
And followup from Christmas miracles: Kathryn who came to the VC and saw God's Plan while two months pregnant has a baptism date! For January 26th too! She came to the VC with the missionaries who are teaching her - I wasn't there, but Sister Sia was and they recognized each other! I've been trying to call her but she's never answered - it's so good to know that she's actually progressing! And another woman that Sister Ayala met outside, Xochitl, is being taught by the San Leandro sisters who work in the VC and she has a baptism date for February 8th with her whole family! We're working on contacting all of these people because I'm sure even more have baptism dates! It's so amazing to see the fruits of our labors throughout the mission and the world!
Last thing - less active miracle. We had a meeting with our Relief Society President and she asked us to visit Hna Lares. We tried the phone number we had and it didn't work, and she was in a dangerous area so we needed to have a set appointment. Then as we were planning, we found some papers with a different number for her and she answered and we set an appointment for thirty minutes later. So we rushed over there and had a lesson with her, where she told us that she had been praying just a few days ago for direction from God and our call and subsequent visit was the answer to her prayer. She also said she never has her phone on her, but she had it and picked it up immediately when we called. Her 11-year-old daughter Lupita has been wanting to go to a church and the elders have already set a baptism date with her! They didn't make it to church this week, but we're really excited to see where it goes! Once again, divine guidance from ward leaders and the Spirit brought us to the door to answer one of His children's prayers.
So.....now I'm all caught up on the miracles. I think. And we have another transfer of even more miracles coming right up!!!
Have a great week! Pray for and look for those missionary opportunities! They just bring so much joy and happiness :)
Hermana Hunsaker
I didn't even talk about last week's church miracle. The Ramirez family all came to church again because their parents didn't have to work. We saw them the night before and started a fast with them so they could know if they needed to be baptized and to resolve some of their individual questions. After church, we walked around the temple terrace and invited them to be baptized. This time they said yes, without any hesitation, and we set the date for January 26th! This is their third date, and they're going to make it! Antonio totally received his answer to his doubts about living prophets during his Sunday School class and is super stoked to get baptized.
They came again yesterday, and walked in by themselves because they were a little late and Sister Ayala and I were up on the stand translating. During Sunday School, Brother Ramirez had a interview with the Bishop and Bishop said that he'll be able to baptize his kids on the 26th! It's such a miracle and we're just so so so excited for them. We also found out that Sister Ramirez IS a member. She's been praying to remember her baptism and it's slowly starting to come back to her!
We dropped the Romero family this week. They were doing so awesome, and we had a GREAT lesson with them about eternal marriage and how the gospel will help them fix their marriage last Saturday night. They said they were going to be at church, and they didn't show up. We gave them one more chance to meet us at the VC this week but they stopped responding to our calls and texts. Sometimes, you do all you can as a missionary and it's not enough because it's still not the time. But they'll be ready the next time missionaries knock on their door :)
We have a lot of potential investigators that we met the past couple of weeks, and we're excited to have time to see them this week! We met Guadalupe and Jose at a bus stop - we were on our way to contact in the area of our investigators and we saw them and almost immediately pulled over. Then in order to not look super creepy, we walked past them and around the block to get back to our car, and we found Jose and Miguel standing out on their apartment balcony. We had taught someone else in that apartment complex earlier and we knew that everyone spoke Spanish but the gate is ALWAYS locked. We had an awkward conversation with Jose as he stood up on the balcony, and Miguel came down to talk to us. No one in this apartment complex has a religion and they're ALL related to each other in some way. We're going to baptism the entire complex. We're super excited. We also met Juana - and that was a miracle too. She lives in an apartment complex of latinos in Berkeley that's been picked over probably more than a dozen times by other missionaries. We knocked on a lot of doors with people who really weren't interested, but we found her. She said that she's never home and the gate is never opened so she knows that this didn't just happen by coincidence. She works a lot, but she's ready to learn and change!
As for our awesome English contact this week, her name is Grace. We just started talking to her because she was wearing cool elephant earrings and then she needed directions. She just moved here from Wyoming and is looking for a place to stay right now, but she's just awesome. She grew up going to church and she wants to find a church again to find more guidance and direction in her life. We testified of the restoration and how she'll feel at home as she attends our church. The Berkeley Singles sisters are going to teach her. It's going to be awesome!
And a couple cool VC experiences: We had two awesome families come to the VC on New Year's Day. Jacqueline brought her husband and two daughters. They had a big fight that morning, but they watched God's Plan and they want to have more peace in their family through the gospel! Also, Cesar and Marta brought their good friends Patricia and Javier who were visiting from Mexico. They all had AWESOME questions and totally understand the restoration! And one of the first questions they asked was if we believed that God and Jesus Christ and the Holy Ghost were three separate people. They've always been confused by that and they believe that they are separate beings! After trying to say goodbye to them five or six times, they finally left saying that if they didn't leave at that moment, they'd be there all night asking questions. They're totally going to be baptized!
And followup from Christmas miracles: Kathryn who came to the VC and saw God's Plan while two months pregnant has a baptism date! For January 26th too! She came to the VC with the missionaries who are teaching her - I wasn't there, but Sister Sia was and they recognized each other! I've been trying to call her but she's never answered - it's so good to know that she's actually progressing! And another woman that Sister Ayala met outside, Xochitl, is being taught by the San Leandro sisters who work in the VC and she has a baptism date for February 8th with her whole family! We're working on contacting all of these people because I'm sure even more have baptism dates! It's so amazing to see the fruits of our labors throughout the mission and the world!
Last thing - less active miracle. We had a meeting with our Relief Society President and she asked us to visit Hna Lares. We tried the phone number we had and it didn't work, and she was in a dangerous area so we needed to have a set appointment. Then as we were planning, we found some papers with a different number for her and she answered and we set an appointment for thirty minutes later. So we rushed over there and had a lesson with her, where she told us that she had been praying just a few days ago for direction from God and our call and subsequent visit was the answer to her prayer. She also said she never has her phone on her, but she had it and picked it up immediately when we called. Her 11-year-old daughter Lupita has been wanting to go to a church and the elders have already set a baptism date with her! They didn't make it to church this week, but we're really excited to see where it goes! Once again, divine guidance from ward leaders and the Spirit brought us to the door to answer one of His children's prayers.
So.....now I'm all caught up on the miracles. I think. And we have another transfer of even more miracles coming right up!!!
Have a great week! Pray for and look for those missionary opportunities! They just bring so much joy and happiness :)
Hermana Hunsaker
Wednesday, January 8, 2014
Led by the Spirit
There are just too many miracles to write down from this past week. Here are two:
But first: New Year's Eve. We watched Despicable Me 2 and Monsters University. They were great, as expected. It was weird - last year, I had only been on my mission for a few months so it seemed pretty normal still, but after not having a movie night for a year, it was strange. But it was fun, and a great way to end the year.
So......yeah. Time for the miracles.
One of the most important things I think I've learned on my mission is that missionary work really is the Lord's work. As missionaries, we don't really do all that much. We can do our best to pray and study and plan and practice and find and teach and baptize, but it all happens in His timing. Hermana Ayala and I DEFINITELY saw that this week.
Monday night: Our 6 and 7 o'clock appointments cancelled. We had a member set up and everything, and then they cancelled. We had never taken this member out before so we wanted her to have a good experience and not just tract all night without results. So.....we brought her with us anyways. We drove out to Berkeley to contact a referral, and he ended up living in an apartment complex that we had been meaning to come back and knock but we never had gotten the chance. He couldn't see us, so we just decided to tract with the member. The first few doors weren't interested, but then we found Rafael and Maria, who recently started going to a Christian church. They invited us in and we shared a short lesson with them, but they said they were really busy and didn't have time to meet with us regularly. Then we walked down the stairs, trying to decide if we should keep knocking or drive back to Oakland to get to our 8pm appointment on time. As we're trying to decide this, a man named Edgar walked up to the door we're standing by and started talking to us as he's trying to find his keys to get into the apartment. We were talking to him for awhile and we asked if we could come in but he said he was busy. But then we still kept talking. We ended up talking about his 1-year-old son and mentioned that his family could be together forever. He said, "How?" and invited us in. His wife Angela joined us too and they had lots of great questions about how we should be baptized and the nature of God. We got to share a little bit of the Book of Mormon with them and they said we could come back! We haven't been able to because their work schedules are crazy, but we're still working on it!
Tuesday afternoon: We had a lesson scheduled with Raquel, our recent convert but she cancelled the appointment and rescheduled for the next day. We had a less-active, Rosa, as our backup plan but I was kind of nervous about visiting her. We stopped going to see her because she started ignoring us, but I noticed last Sunday at church that I hadn't seen her for awhile. I didn't know what we would be teaching, but I remembered that she had a question about the three kingdoms of glory that we never answered. So we ended up just talking about the plan of salvation and she ended up telling us EVERYTHING that was going on. She's a single mom of four and was having problems with her ex-husband; he hit her with his car and then claimed that she was crazy and called Child Protective Services to come to her house. Her oldest daughter is only 10 or 1 but she's suicidal and Rosa was just so scared about losing her kids. I knew nothing about any of this, and I didn't know what to say, but it was enough that we were there. She said that missionaries hadn't been to her home in months (she doesn't live in our area but we have permission to see single less-active women in the ward), and at lunch she had just been praying with her kids for help from someone. We committed her to read the Book of Mormon everyday to find peace and just comforted her. This experience reminded me of President Monson's story in the General Relief Society broadcast this past year as I was able to witness again how God showed her that He was there by sending us over that day. It was a feeling I'll never forget, and I was filled with so much love for this woman that I had never been able to connect with before. Even though we didn't even know that it was the Spirit, He definitely guided us there.
So......that's all the time I have today. Hopefully I'll be able to fit some more of this week's miracles in next week's email. This one's already too long anyways. But that's what I've learned. There's no need to fear or worry or wonder or stress. We just need to have faith and hope and confidence and "trust in the Lord." http://www.lds.org/general-conference/2013/10/put-your-trust-in-the-lord?lang=eng
Happy New Year!!!
Hermana Hunsaker
But first: New Year's Eve. We watched Despicable Me 2 and Monsters University. They were great, as expected. It was weird - last year, I had only been on my mission for a few months so it seemed pretty normal still, but after not having a movie night for a year, it was strange. But it was fun, and a great way to end the year.
So......yeah. Time for the miracles.
One of the most important things I think I've learned on my mission is that missionary work really is the Lord's work. As missionaries, we don't really do all that much. We can do our best to pray and study and plan and practice and find and teach and baptize, but it all happens in His timing. Hermana Ayala and I DEFINITELY saw that this week.
Monday night: Our 6 and 7 o'clock appointments cancelled. We had a member set up and everything, and then they cancelled. We had never taken this member out before so we wanted her to have a good experience and not just tract all night without results. So.....we brought her with us anyways. We drove out to Berkeley to contact a referral, and he ended up living in an apartment complex that we had been meaning to come back and knock but we never had gotten the chance. He couldn't see us, so we just decided to tract with the member. The first few doors weren't interested, but then we found Rafael and Maria, who recently started going to a Christian church. They invited us in and we shared a short lesson with them, but they said they were really busy and didn't have time to meet with us regularly. Then we walked down the stairs, trying to decide if we should keep knocking or drive back to Oakland to get to our 8pm appointment on time. As we're trying to decide this, a man named Edgar walked up to the door we're standing by and started talking to us as he's trying to find his keys to get into the apartment. We were talking to him for awhile and we asked if we could come in but he said he was busy. But then we still kept talking. We ended up talking about his 1-year-old son and mentioned that his family could be together forever. He said, "How?" and invited us in. His wife Angela joined us too and they had lots of great questions about how we should be baptized and the nature of God. We got to share a little bit of the Book of Mormon with them and they said we could come back! We haven't been able to because their work schedules are crazy, but we're still working on it!
Tuesday afternoon: We had a lesson scheduled with Raquel, our recent convert but she cancelled the appointment and rescheduled for the next day. We had a less-active, Rosa, as our backup plan but I was kind of nervous about visiting her. We stopped going to see her because she started ignoring us, but I noticed last Sunday at church that I hadn't seen her for awhile. I didn't know what we would be teaching, but I remembered that she had a question about the three kingdoms of glory that we never answered. So we ended up just talking about the plan of salvation and she ended up telling us EVERYTHING that was going on. She's a single mom of four and was having problems with her ex-husband; he hit her with his car and then claimed that she was crazy and called Child Protective Services to come to her house. Her oldest daughter is only 10 or 1 but she's suicidal and Rosa was just so scared about losing her kids. I knew nothing about any of this, and I didn't know what to say, but it was enough that we were there. She said that missionaries hadn't been to her home in months (she doesn't live in our area but we have permission to see single less-active women in the ward), and at lunch she had just been praying with her kids for help from someone. We committed her to read the Book of Mormon everyday to find peace and just comforted her. This experience reminded me of President Monson's story in the General Relief Society broadcast this past year as I was able to witness again how God showed her that He was there by sending us over that day. It was a feeling I'll never forget, and I was filled with so much love for this woman that I had never been able to connect with before. Even though we didn't even know that it was the Spirit, He definitely guided us there.
So......that's all the time I have today. Hopefully I'll be able to fit some more of this week's miracles in next week's email. This one's already too long anyways. But that's what I've learned. There's no need to fear or worry or wonder or stress. We just need to have faith and hope and confidence and "trust in the Lord." http://www.lds.org/general-conference/2013/10/put-your-trust-in-the-lord?lang=eng
Happy New Year!!!
Hermana Hunsaker
Friday, January 3, 2014
One word to describe my 2013: Tired.
Today, I'm tired. Like, really really tired. It's been a long week. Good week, but long week. Preparation day is supposed to be so you can relax for the rest of the week, but even though we're back to 8 hour preparation days, I don't think I'll get much relaxing in.
The best part of this week, just like last Christmastime, was our Christmas concert. It was so great. The Spirit was so strong and I'm so grateful for the many ways that God has given us to bear our testimonies, especially through song.
The VC was pretty busy practically every night, and was full of prepared people. I can't even recount all the stories but there were so many miracles. We got over 800 referrals this month while last year we only got 500, and we had 23,000 people come, 3,000 more than last year! It was crazy and tiring and draining but I'm so grateful for the opportunity to serve two Christmases here in the VC.
I skyped home Christmas Eve, and the first thing Trey said to me was, "Jill, where you be?" And then halfway into the call, the sound went out and I couldn't hear a thing. I've never had a successful skype session on my mission - something always has to go wrong. Through lip-reading and Dad's over-exaggerated word-mouthing, everything that needed to be said was said. Except maybe an "I love you". I tend to forget that one pretty often, even when I haven't seen them in over a year. So in case I forgot, here it is now: I love you Mom, Dad, Brad, Mia and Trey. And one for Parker too, since I didn't get to see him. I'll get to see him for Mother's Day though!
For Christmas Day, we went to President Mullen's home - he's a counselor in the stake presidency and he and his wife were just called to serve as mission president and wife in the California Riverside mission. He served his mission in Chile so he stops in to our ward a lot. They fed us an awesome Christmas breakfast (just like the ones at home) and we played games and had lunch too (also amazing). It was more relaxing than preparation day, that's for sure. Then top it off with our last Christmas performance, and it was exactly what Christmas should be: food, family, music and Christ. That's all you really need, right?
We managed to have three member-present lessons this week! More than we've had all month combined! I love when people have time off from work because of the holidays. That's one of the best parts. We FINALLY made contact with the Ramirez family again and it's going to take time for them to get baptized, but the testimonies of their parents are so strong and those will help push them along until they are ready. We're still teaching the Sanchez family and the Romero family but we haven't seen much progress there. But we're excited to get out this week and find even more investigators!
It's weird to think that 2013, my only full year as a missionary, is almost over. Time flies so fast. We're going to see some amazing things here in the Oakland 6th ward come 2014. I'm so grateful for all the miracles of 2013 and the ones I'll experience in 2014 during the final days of my mission and throughout the rest of the year afterwards. Even though 2013 was the year of my mission, every year is going to be a missionary year! It's never too late to change, and I've seen God change hearts, especially my own. Through all the tests and trials of the year, I've gained so much more faith, hope and charity. I can't even count all the lessons I've learned, and there are still so many on the way! I'm so grateful for the chance to serve!
Farewell 2013, and Happy New Year's everyone!
Hermana Hunsaker
The best part of this week, just like last Christmastime, was our Christmas concert. It was so great. The Spirit was so strong and I'm so grateful for the many ways that God has given us to bear our testimonies, especially through song.
The VC was pretty busy practically every night, and was full of prepared people. I can't even recount all the stories but there were so many miracles. We got over 800 referrals this month while last year we only got 500, and we had 23,000 people come, 3,000 more than last year! It was crazy and tiring and draining but I'm so grateful for the opportunity to serve two Christmases here in the VC.
I skyped home Christmas Eve, and the first thing Trey said to me was, "Jill, where you be?" And then halfway into the call, the sound went out and I couldn't hear a thing. I've never had a successful skype session on my mission - something always has to go wrong. Through lip-reading and Dad's over-exaggerated word-mouthing, everything that needed to be said was said. Except maybe an "I love you". I tend to forget that one pretty often, even when I haven't seen them in over a year. So in case I forgot, here it is now: I love you Mom, Dad, Brad, Mia and Trey. And one for Parker too, since I didn't get to see him. I'll get to see him for Mother's Day though!
For Christmas Day, we went to President Mullen's home - he's a counselor in the stake presidency and he and his wife were just called to serve as mission president and wife in the California Riverside mission. He served his mission in Chile so he stops in to our ward a lot. They fed us an awesome Christmas breakfast (just like the ones at home) and we played games and had lunch too (also amazing). It was more relaxing than preparation day, that's for sure. Then top it off with our last Christmas performance, and it was exactly what Christmas should be: food, family, music and Christ. That's all you really need, right?
We managed to have three member-present lessons this week! More than we've had all month combined! I love when people have time off from work because of the holidays. That's one of the best parts. We FINALLY made contact with the Ramirez family again and it's going to take time for them to get baptized, but the testimonies of their parents are so strong and those will help push them along until they are ready. We're still teaching the Sanchez family and the Romero family but we haven't seen much progress there. But we're excited to get out this week and find even more investigators!
It's weird to think that 2013, my only full year as a missionary, is almost over. Time flies so fast. We're going to see some amazing things here in the Oakland 6th ward come 2014. I'm so grateful for all the miracles of 2013 and the ones I'll experience in 2014 during the final days of my mission and throughout the rest of the year afterwards. Even though 2013 was the year of my mission, every year is going to be a missionary year! It's never too late to change, and I've seen God change hearts, especially my own. Through all the tests and trials of the year, I've gained so much more faith, hope and charity. I can't even count all the lessons I've learned, and there are still so many on the way! I'm so grateful for the chance to serve!
Farewell 2013, and Happy New Year's everyone!
Hermana Hunsaker
Merry Christmas!
It's 70 degrees outside and super sunny. We're going hiking and eating carne asada quesadillas for our district activity today. It totally doesn't feel like Christmas Eve Eve. Last year in Castro Valley was at least cold, but I went out talking to people on the templegrounds last night and I didn't even wear a coat. Just a sweater. So weird. "White Christmas" has been stuck in my head all week. I'll just have to make sure I get one next year :)
I forgot my planner today so I'm not really sure what happened last week. The Visitors' Center has been super crazy the past two nights - we've had over 2000 people come in both nights. So....it's been crazy. We only had four lessons because we were in the VC so much. All of our investigators are making some progress, but it's slow. But we're just being patient and waiting on the blessings. They're about to come to this area and it's about time. The Sanchez family all came to the ward Christmas dinner even though we weren't there, and they're spending Christmas with their member neighbors! The Romero family finally have questions, and they're ABOUT to make it to church. This week is the week. And the Ramirez family was super out of touch so they're not getting baptized this Sunday. But it will happen, even if it's not right now.
I've been studying humility and patience all month. They pretty much go hand in hand. I've had to be very patient with my investigators and I haven't seen the success I wanted to see. One of the best examples of both patience and humility in the Book of Mormon is Enos. He asked the Lord to change the hearts of the Lamanites, and God pretty much told him that it wasn't time for that. Instead of being frustrated because God wouldn't give him what he wanted, he was in tune with the Spirit to understand the will of God and accept it. And he had to be really patient because God's promise wasn't fulfilled for hundreds of years. He wasn't even alive to see it. It's a lot like how we have to be as missionaries. We won't always see the fruits of our efforts, but we have to be humble enough to accept the Lord's plan and trust that these people will have another chance to hear the gospel when they are ready to accept it. It takes a lot of patience, but all the promises of God will be fulfilled. We just have to do all we can do, and then pray.
Ammon was also a great example of patience and humility. His only desire was to serve King Lamoni. He wasn't looking for anything in return - he wasn't even expecting the conversion of the Lamanites. He just wanted to serve them whether or not they accepted the gospel. He was willing to humble himself and serve the king without expecting anything in return. Our bishop shared this thought in ward council yesterday and it helped Sister Ayala and I deal with the fact that none of our investigators came to church.
Anyways.....it's not a very "Christmas-y" message today. But it all comes down to love, and that's why our Savior came into the world. Just something to think about this Christmas season. As we love and serve God and others, we'll be able to patiently and humbly deal with our circumstances and share the love of Christ with others.
Merry Christmas everyone!
Hermana Hunsaker
I forgot my planner today so I'm not really sure what happened last week. The Visitors' Center has been super crazy the past two nights - we've had over 2000 people come in both nights. So....it's been crazy. We only had four lessons because we were in the VC so much. All of our investigators are making some progress, but it's slow. But we're just being patient and waiting on the blessings. They're about to come to this area and it's about time. The Sanchez family all came to the ward Christmas dinner even though we weren't there, and they're spending Christmas with their member neighbors! The Romero family finally have questions, and they're ABOUT to make it to church. This week is the week. And the Ramirez family was super out of touch so they're not getting baptized this Sunday. But it will happen, even if it's not right now.
I've been studying humility and patience all month. They pretty much go hand in hand. I've had to be very patient with my investigators and I haven't seen the success I wanted to see. One of the best examples of both patience and humility in the Book of Mormon is Enos. He asked the Lord to change the hearts of the Lamanites, and God pretty much told him that it wasn't time for that. Instead of being frustrated because God wouldn't give him what he wanted, he was in tune with the Spirit to understand the will of God and accept it. And he had to be really patient because God's promise wasn't fulfilled for hundreds of years. He wasn't even alive to see it. It's a lot like how we have to be as missionaries. We won't always see the fruits of our efforts, but we have to be humble enough to accept the Lord's plan and trust that these people will have another chance to hear the gospel when they are ready to accept it. It takes a lot of patience, but all the promises of God will be fulfilled. We just have to do all we can do, and then pray.
Ammon was also a great example of patience and humility. His only desire was to serve King Lamoni. He wasn't looking for anything in return - he wasn't even expecting the conversion of the Lamanites. He just wanted to serve them whether or not they accepted the gospel. He was willing to humble himself and serve the king without expecting anything in return. Our bishop shared this thought in ward council yesterday and it helped Sister Ayala and I deal with the fact that none of our investigators came to church.
Anyways.....it's not a very "Christmas-y" message today. But it all comes down to love, and that's why our Savior came into the world. Just something to think about this Christmas season. As we love and serve God and others, we'll be able to patiently and humbly deal with our circumstances and share the love of Christ with others.
Merry Christmas everyone!
Hermana Hunsaker
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