Wednesday, October 1, 2014

Last Letter from Peru

Well, I have only got about 10 minutes to write my email today because my district surprised me with a trip to Catac, which is a town about an hour away... and it is beautiful! Our zone is going there today and we have only a little bit of time on the internet. I bet you're asking yourself, ¨Wait, I thought the zone was going to get together LAST week to say goodbye??¨ Well, I'll tell you what happened...

Don't freak at this story, I am totally fine now. Last week on Pday, at the church (outside in the soccer field), we started having a water balloon fight. Some of the sisters didn't want to get wet so they ran in the bathroom. Well, the Elders wanted to soak them , and they knew I could get them to come out, so they sent me to get them out of the bathroom. Well, I went to the bathroom, and as I slowly opened the door to the bathroom, the three sisters ran towards the door and flung themselves at the door to keep me from getting in. Long story short, the door slit my face open and broke my finger!!.I was soaking wet and it was cold outside and when I saw all the blood above me eye, my body went into shock! haha. So Pday was kind of ruined after that! But, luckily the senior missionary couple was there and the they were able to help clean up the cut above my eye and help me with my finger and my arm. The cut is A LOT better now! It is just a scar above my eye now, so that is good...I will always remember Huaraz thanks to this scar :) I am fine now :) 

Also, the story with Manuel this week is interesting(remember him from my last few letters). He came here to Huaraz to train to be a policeman. Well, he told us that he wasn't sure if that is what God wanted him to do. I told him the story of me deciding to serve a mission. I told him that I didn't know what it was that Heavenly Father had planned for me. I prayed and prayed a lot because there were a lot of things telling me to not serve a mission but I felt that I should do it. Until finally one day, I felt the Spirit SO strongly that I should serve a mission. It was as strong as I had felt it when I asked the Lord if the Book of Mormon was true. I knew from that moment on, that it was in God's plan for me to serve a mission and I was determined to do it, no matter what obstacles were in my way. We invited Manuel to pray as well to ask Heavenly Father what he should do. A couple days later, Manuel told us that he had been praying and he felt the same feeling of the Spirit that I felt when I knew I should serve a mission. He said that Heavenly Father had let him know that he should not study to be a policeman and he should return to Trujillo. Well, he had that same determination that I had apparently, because the next day he travelled to Trujillo. He promised us that he was going to look for the missionaries first thing and get baptized in Trujillo. Well, that was definitely NOT what I was expecting!! It was kind of disappointing for us to be honest, but at the same time, I was happy that I was able to help Manuel figure out what Heavenly Father wants with his life. Manuel is amazing, and I know he will be a STRONG member of the church in Trujillo. He follows the Spirit and He trusts in God. One of the most important things I have learned on my mission is submitting ourselves to God's will and not losing faith if His will is not our will. Sometimes we ask ourselves if we have enough faith to receive answers to prayers but sometimes, as Elder Bednar says, we should ask ourselves if we have enough faith to NOT receive answers to our prayers. Even if it means I couldn't be at Manuel´s baptism, I know that it was God's will for Manuel to go back to Trujillo and get baptized there. I am so grateful because I have been able to develop an unbreakable faith on my mission that I know will help me throughout my whole life. Heavenly Father knows what He is doing. And we have to have faith in His will, even if it doesn't exactly align with ours :) I know that He lives. I know that He is our Father and He loves us SO much. There is nothing that I am more certain of.

We did find an incredible family this week.  One morning we woke up and decided we would go out knocking on doors.  I haven't had much success on my mission with this approach, but we prayed about where to go, and we both felt inspired to go to an area of Huaraz that we hadn't spent much time in.  It was raining SO hard, and not many people would open their doors.  Finally, we knocked on a door, and a woman answered.  She was home with her husband and 4 kids, and they were interested in listening to our message.  We asked them if they wanted to strengthen their marriage and their family.  Both Mom and Dad started to cry and told us YES they wanted to make changes in their life, and strengthen their family. The Mejilla family is excited to learn more about this gospel of Jesus Christ, and want to be baptized in November. The Lord answers prayers, and leads us to those who need the gospel in their lives. I am sad I won't be here to help teach them the gospel, but I know they will be in good hands with Hermana Medina. 

Well, I can 100% understand NOW why the Spirit told me that day that I needed to serve a mission :) I didn't understand it at the time, but now I do :) I have been changed and prepared for my life. I know this gospel, and every aspect of it is true. I have experienced the changing power of the Atonement and I have seen the power of the gospel in the lives of the people here in Peru. I will never go back to who I was before, because of this testimony I have gained of Jesus Christ and His Atonement. I know that He lives and thanks to him, we can return to live with our Heavenly Father. I loved my mission. I am sure you will hear ALL about it for the next couple of months...I wont be able to stop talking about all the amazing experiences that I have had :) I am thankful for everything I have learned...from the Book of Mormon, President Archibald, and the Spirit. I love you all and I will see you next week! I can't wait to see you!! 

Con mucho cariƱo y gracias,
Hermana Agle

No comments:

Post a Comment