The Miracle is in the Mangos

Lucero and Alba's Baptism

Hermana Daugs, Lucero, Hermano Martinez, Alba, Hermana Jackson

Small Plates 

The miracle is in the mangos 

We had Alba and Lucero's baptisms planned for this week, and let me tell you guys: the devil works hard, but God and His army work harder.

About 10 days before any baptism, the enemy really panics and employs any last forces he can to stop God's children from finding happiness and returning back to His presence. Having 2 baptisms scheduled for the same week meant we were attacked with twice as many attempts to deter us from having their baptisms. And when I say "we were attacked," I mean us missionaries as well as our sweet friends Alba and Lucero. I hate satan, you guys. So much. 

That being said, satan doesn't prevail if we don't let him prevail. Each one of us, the missionaries and our soon-to-be converts, have all decided individually and collectively to let God prevail in our lives.

For example: Alba had not yet had all of the lessons or her baptismal interview, with less than a week until her baptism. This wouldn't be too tricky, except that she works from about 8 am to 9 pm every day. There was not going to be any time this week to have her lesson and prepare her for her baptism! We thought for sure we would just have to move her baptismal date back in order to accommodate for her schedule. 

Then Tuesday rolls around and she calls us to tell us she took the whole day off of work, which is something she's never done before. We took advantage of the opportunity and invited her to our member meal that night! We still weren't sure if we were going to be able to prepare her sufficiently with such little time, but we figured something is better than nothing. 

We were going about our day, excited for dinner with some of our favorite members and Alba, when she called us and said she was at Target and didn't want to pay for an Uber to get home just to have to go to dinner soon after. So, she decided she was just going to hang out at Target until dinnertime. Dinner was in like 3 hours. We decided we would go hang out at Target with her to keep her company for some of that time and have a lesson! We hung up the phone and headed straight for Target. There, we had an incredible lesson on the benches outside and actually had Elder Mortensen call and do her baptismal interview!! It's certainly not what we were planning on doing that day, but it was a welcomed surprise! Alba really inspires me because she only had one day off this week and she wanted to spend as much of it as she could with us, preparing herself for her baptism! That's what it looks like to let God prevail. 

It was such a miracle to be able to have that lesson with Alba. But that was only Tuesday, and the devil kept working. And God kept working harder!

We had a lesson on Wednesday with Lucero and it was so good! She's super prepared. Also! Apparently about 6 months ago, she saw me and Sister Morris talking to a friend of hers! He was outside working on his car but he can't walk very well so he was in a wheelchair thing. We had gone over to see if we could help and ended up getting invited to this guy's prayer service. We never ended up going but apparently Lucero has been going to that prayer group for a long time now and she was at his house when we were outside talking to him! God is in the details. 

As the week went on, Lucero got more and more unsure that she would be able to be baptized on Saturday. She works in a warehouse and sometimes they have to work until 9 PM. They only know how long they're going to be there one day in advance. For example, on Friday she would find out how long she'd have to work on Saturday. Friday night she texted us and said that her boss anticipated that they would be at work until at least 8 or 9 PM on Saturday. We were really sad about it because we wanted her to get baptized on Saturday with Alba so that they could be on that journey together.

We decided the best thing to do would be to change Lucero's baptism to Sunday after church. Church gets out at 3:30 so we had the baptism planned for 4 and we changed all of our plans and found speakers, and talked to the bishopric about all of it, and it seems like it was going to work out just fine. Then Lucero let us know that she actually had to be in Tampa Sunday afternoon and would be leaving church early to do so, so the baptism would not be able to happen Sunday after church. We were unsure when the baptism was going to be able to happen because her next week of work would be just as crazy as the last.

We didn't know how to resolve the problem, so we went about our business as best as we could to help Alba to be baptized on Saturday. The baptism all planned out and the font starting to fill, we got all those names written on the chalkboard nice and pretty, and everything was pretty much set for Alba's baptism.. We were waiting in the church doing some of our studies and planning so that we could watch the font as it filled. We were in the middle of personal study when Hermana Jackson got a text from Lucero. It was about 2:15 p.m.  Lucero had told us that she had just got home from work. We called her right then to figure out what was going on and to see if we were going to have her baptism that day! She told us that the shipment of mangoes they were supposed to sort never showed up to the warehouse, so they had about 6 to 8 hours of work lifted off of their shoulders. We changed all of our plans and prepared for 2 baptisms that night instead!

I don't even know how to explain how big of a miracle that was for us. We were so stressed and worried for both of our friends and if they were going to be able to get baptized. God works in mysterious ways!

The baptisms were incredible and the spirit was so strong. Alba and Lucero were so lucky to have so much support. So much of the ward came to be with them on a special day. 

After the baptism, we all went over to our ward mission leaders house! He and his wife are both incredible people and they hosted a little dinner and testimony meeting/family home evening. It was so incredible to be able to hear all of our recent converts share their testimonies and say that they know without a doubt that the church is true. It warmed my heart right up!!

I don't want to make this email much longer than it already is, but I just want you all to know that I know that God is in charge of this work. He works way too many miracles for us to believe otherwise. It's so cool to see how much He wants His children to make and keep covenants like baptism with Him. God is real and God is good.

The Holy Ghost is real

Being Silly with the Primary Children during the Father's Day Song practice. 

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Quick summary:)

This week was also a busy week but I don't want to write a giant email like I did last week, so here are a few highlights:

Alba and Lucero have been preparing diligently for their baptisms next week! We've had a few good lessons with both of them and I love them both so much! 

I got to play piano for the primary kids because they were practicing their Father's day song. The ward pianist didn't end up coming to church either, so I played the hymns and the primary songs in church haha. 

We went over to this cute member family's house & helped the mom with some things around the house. They have 3 cute crazy boys and they both have big callings and he works in management for Jetblue so they're so so busy. It felt so good to help them out! 

We had a really fun Father's day activity on Saturday! Basically we just made the men play minute to win it games and we all laughed at them while they did it. We had yummy food and bishop's wife was so sweet and made us vegetarian chili.

Last, but not least, Kevin was baptized this week! See more in the Small Plates:)

Small plates

The Holy Ghost is real.

Kevin was baptized this week! The Elders in our ward were the ones who taught him, and we are so happy to be adding him to our ward family! His baptism was a really special experience. 

We had a ward activity right before the baptism, so there were quite a few people who stuck around to support him. Right from the start, the spirit was so strong. Kevin was really nervous but really excited. The YSA Elders brought their friend Emma, a really sweet girl they're teaching, so me and Hermana Jackson sat by her to make her feel happy & comfortable. She's so awesome. 

The Elders asked their recent convert of about a month to give the talk on the Holy Ghost. Just to give you some context on this man, he comes from very humble circumstances and a very humble education in his country. Back when the Elders were teaching him, they used to say they felt like he only had about 3 default phrases that he would respond with. That may have been an exaggeration, but the idea is that he was not very well-spoken. He had the biggest heart, but he's a man of few words. 

We've seen a change in him since he was baptized and received the Holy Ghost. We see a change in everyone after their baptisms, but I was just really struck by this man's experience. 

He got up to give his talk, and the spirit that was already there just filled the room with power. He spoke about the Holy Ghost and his talk was so beautiful and eloquent and I was blown away. I had never heard him express himself so well. 

The Spirit can take our weaknesses and turn them into strengths. Especially when those strengths are to be used to bear testimony of Truth. 

I felt the spirit so strong. And it wasn't just because of the words he was saying. It's because what he was saying is true. When we receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, we are promised the constant companionship of the Third Member of the Godhead. 

The Spirit always testifies of truth. So, if the Spirit is present, that means whatever is being taught or shared is true. And the spirit will testify whether we understand the words that are being said or not. 

That's what happened for Emma. She doesn't speak Spanish, but she came to the baptism to see how it is. She didn't understand a word of what they were saying, but the Spirit touched her heart. At one point in the baptismal service, she turned to us and said, "wow, I'm so emotional right now." All I said was, "can you feel it?" And pointed to my chest, which felt like it was about to burst open with joy. She nodded.

After the baptism, we stayed by her side and talked to her for a little while. She explained how she had felt. She said "I don't understand Spanish. But that spirit was so strong." She's so motivated to keep learning and keep progressing towards baptism! 

I love that the Spirit speaks to us regardless of whether or not we understand the words it is testifying of. There is a lot I don't understand, even in English. For the sake of illustrating an example, temple ordinances and covenants pretty much go over my head. But, I feel the spirit when I'm in the temple. Because the things we hear and learn and do in the temple are true and of God. And it's okay if we don't understand it all yet. If we just pay attention to how we feel, and recognize the testimony of the Spirit, that is enough. 

Knowledge comes line upon line throughout eternity. But after we receive the Gift of the Holy Ghost, truth can be known in an instant, so long as we are worthy of the companionship of the Spirit and in tune with His whispers. 

Although I don't know everything about this Church, I know it's true. Because the Spirit has told me so. And that is enough for me.

"Floating Activity" ( Sailor hats while dipping Oreos in milk )

Last Activity with one of our Senior Couples

Buena Ventura Primary- Father's Day Song Practice

Miracles!

 

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Life just keeps getting better and better

This week was so so good (surprise surprise). 

Also, a side note– as I am writing this I am also listening to the SeaWorld fireworks that we can watch from our study desks. I don't know how to express how amazing this mission is but I hope that gives you a glimpse of it. 

Pday was fun! We started off by playing Pickleball with the Welch's, a senior couple that lives in our complex. I love them to pieces. I lost in pickleball, but I still had fun! And I won later in the week so all is well;)

I also got to see some of my family of Pday! Naomi and her cute family were so sweet and took me and Sister Jackson our for lunch. Cutler showed me a lizard he caught! That, combined with his super awesome mullet, pretty much makes him the coolest kid ever. It was so good to see their family. I've only been gone 7 months or so but those kids have grown so much! And of course I love Naomi and Nate, my cliff jumping buddy, so much! If you are reading this, thanks again for lunch!!

Tuesday morning we went to say goodbye to the Gomez family, because they're heading out to Colombia for a vacation for a couple months, and we didn't know if we would be here when they came back. I was especially unsure because transfers are this week and since I've already been in this area 7 months, it was pretty much a given that I would be leaving (more on that later). I was sad to say goodbye to the Gomez family because I just love them so much! Its okay though, they told me I could go on a trip to Columbia with them after my mission:)

We also went to dinner with the Rosarios, some more of my favorite members. I've eaten with them every week of my mission thus far. They are definitely one of my favorite families. We got chinese food and it was super good! I think it's the first time I've had Asian food on the mission because all we eat is Hispanic food haha.

Wednesday was so great! We had a district council in the morning and wow. DC is always so motivating to me. I'm just a very goal-oriented person and it energizes me to see growth. Our district has grown so much this transfer. We've grown in unity, and we've grown into better missionaries. I've really come to love this district and it's been so good to serve around each of them. 

We also went over to Liduvi's on Wednesday. She was one of the miracles that we found in my training. We've been holding on to her for a really long time, and we don't really know how to help her. We didn't go into the lesson with much hope but she said she wants to start keeping commitments and getting closer to God! Please pray for her, that she will develop a habit of reading in the Book of Mormon and that she will make coming to church a priority. She knows baptism is the end goal, and she wants to prepare for it. She just isn't very committed yet to establishing the habits required for true conversion. 

We had dinner that night with the Pacheco-Ortega's. I love those two so much. They're just absolute sweethearts and my heart is always just so full when I'm around them. The food was delicious and their company is always so fun. Hermano Ortega works for Krispy Kreme so he gave us 4 boxes of donuts to take home!

Thursday was such a busy day! We started off by working at the Storehouse at 7:30 am. We had to leave early so we worked as fast as we could so we got a bunch of work done in about an hour. Working hard like that always gives me more energy though. I don't know what it is, maybe Coldstone messed me up, but I get just as much energy from working hard as I do from a good night's sleep. I said goodbyes to my Storehouse crew in case I got transferred. Elder Holladay was really sad to see me go :((

The reason we had to leave early is because we wanted to visit my best friend Carmen! She got baptized a few months ago but it has been really hard for her to come to church because of work. She has the best faith out of anyone I know, though. She'll be back at church soon. I simply cannot express how much I love her. We brought up transfers to her and we were all scared/sad about me leaving. I wasn't too worried about her though, because she wants to move to Utah. We'll definitely stay in touch. We have an arepa truck to run.

We had a video call lesson with Reyci later that day and he's already loving the Book of Mormon! We talked about what he has read. He had just finished 1 Nephi 8 when we called him so we talked about Lehi's dream and the importance of the covenant path. We ended up inviting him to be baptized!! He still feels like he has a lot of preparing and learning to do, and I'm excited to help him prepare!

That night for dinner we ate with Thais and her family! I wrote about this family a few weeks ago. They are one of the biggest miracles I've had on my mission. Thais called us out of the blue because her uncle, who was a member of the Church, had passed away. She wanted to learn more about the Plan of Salvation! The lesson went well a few weeks ago and they really wanted us to come back, they were just on vacation. The day all of them got back,  they reached out and invited us over for dinner! They are neighbors with some of the best members in our ward so the members came too! We had a yummy dinner and got to talking about why we're called Mormons. We explained what the Book of Mormon is and how it came to be and they were all just blown away by how cool it is that Christ visited this continent. It seems like they believed it all right off the bat. Unfortunately, the mission is out of Spanish Book of Mormons so we weren't able to give them one. But they're all coming to church and they want us to come back once we have books to give them their copies! This family has so much potential. They really love their old church, but they have so much faith and they're really good friends with maybe my favorite member in the ward--Anita. I'll keep you guys posted about them!

Okay, that's it for Thursday. I told you it was a lot. 

As for Friday, we started off with a Training Recap zoom because Hermana Jackson is finishing her training this week!! That literally flew by so fast. She's an awesome missionary and she's only been out 3 months. We also had a mission devotional over zoom. It was the last one of the transfer, so some of my favorite missionaries gave their departing testimonies: Elder and Sister Cluff, and Elder Jensen. I'm going to miss all 3 of them so much! 

Later that day, we sat down to do some weekly planning. We are teaching so many good people right now! Throughout the week, me and Hermana Jackson had come to the conclusion that I would be leaving. I was actually completely unsure if I would be leaving or staying, but I wanted to stay. So, I convinced myself I would be leaving. That way, I would either be right, or pleasantly surprised! As we were planning for the people I was convinced I was leaving, we got the email about transfers. Let's just say I was pleasantly surprised!

I'M STAYING IN BUENA VENTURA!!!

That means I will serve half of my mission in my first area, and I couldn't be more happy about it. I love this ward with all my heart and frankly, I never want to leave it. I also love Sister Jackson so much! She's so fun to serve around and we make a good team. Stay tuned for all the miracles we're going to see next transfer!

That night we went over to the Martinez family's home. They're like family to me. Hermano Martinez reminds me a lot of my uncle Nate for some reason, so that really adds to the effect. They made us super yummy food and I ate so much of it. They also let me and Sister Jackson walk their dog, Coco. He can do a handstand which I think is pretty cool.

Saturday was another crazy busy day. We started off the morning by visiting Wendy and Andres! They haven't been able to come to church because they've been moving but they want to start coming every week! Andres is going to get the Aaronic priesthood so that means he'll get to help pass the sacrament! 

We went straight from their house to see Carmencita (Rosario)! She wanted help cleaning out her pantry to prepare for hurricane season. It was so chaotic. I love her so much and I wish we could have stayed with her and helped her clean all day. She was so happy to hear that I would be staying another transfer! 

We left her house to go to Rene's baptism!! Rene is a man who the Elders taught and his baptism was so special! It was a little crazy at first because the water pressure in the faucet was about 30% of what it normally is for some reason, so the font was nowhere near as full as it needed to be. When we got there, some of our missionary friends were filling up 5 gallon coolers from the spicket outside of the church building and dumping them in the font. The craziness went away as soon as we started the service, though. It was so spiritual and Rene bore his testimony at the end and he was so happy!

After the baptism we had a pass off lesson with some other hermanas. They were teaching a really awesome guy, who's dad was a member. His dad passed away a little while ago and the son (his name is Richard) wanted to learn more about his dad's church. They gave him a book of Mormon before we met and he had already read 11 chapters before the lesson! He also invited his son and daughter in law and their cute girl to come to the lesson. It was a good lesson and they all seem really interested in the gospel!

Sunday was one of the busiest days of my mission. We set up our first lesson with our friend Lucero before English class. She is the sweetest Colombian lady and was already familiar with the church. Her daughter is a member and she has some friends who were recently baptized into the ward in the stake next to ours. We started talking about her experience with the church and she bore a really powerful testimony about how the Spirit has made her feel like she found the right church. The member we had there was able to converse with her and we all just shared our thoughts and feelings about the Spirit. We ended up asking Lucero to be baptized! She was so happy and she feels really food about her decision. Please keeo her in your prayers as she prepares!

English class was a ton of fun, because the only students were Alba and Lucero, both of which are the sweetest people ever and theyre both going to be baptized on the same day, and Oscar, who was baptized about a month ago. My heart was full. 

Church was really great and a lot of the people we are teaching came! They all had a great experience. We also got a new Relief Society presidency and I'm really excited about it. I admire each member of the presidency so much and I'm excited to see the miracles that are going to happen.

After church we went over to a member's house to teach some of their friends. This is the same family & friends as last Sunday! Except this time they had even more friends over! Everyone got there super late which was kind of frustrating, but the small spiritual thought wenwere able to share ended up being super powerful! We talked about prayer and helped teach everyone to pray. It was so incredible to hear one of the people we are teaching offer the closing prayer before we left. 

We ended the night at Bishop's house. I've said it before and I'll said it again: I love their family so much. They genuinely feel like my family and I'm so grateful for them. They were all so happy I'm staying another transfer!

Small Plates

Miracles!

I was reading in Moroni this week and I loved these verses:

"Wherefore, my beloved brethren, have miracles ceased because Christ hath ascended into heaven, and hath sat down on the right hand of God, to claim of the Father his rights of mercy which he hath upon the children of men?...Behold I say unto you, Nay; neither have angels ceased to minister unto the children of men."

You guys! Our God is a God of miracles!! 

Miracles are EVERYWHERE. All we have to do is seek, expect, and recognize them. Our Heavenly Father loves us so much and He wants nothing but to bless us. 

There's not much more I can say. Miracles are happening in this area and all over the world. If you're feeling weighed down, this is my one piece of advice: look for a miracle today. Write it down. And thank your Heavenly Father for it. As we recognize more miracles, more miracles enter into our lives. I know it's true. Let Him bless you!

Uncle Nate and Aunt Naomi took me to lunch while they were vacationing Orlando

Carmencita (Rosario)

Carmen!

Hermano Martinez

God is Good

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Yep, I'll say it again: this was the best week of my life.

Last pday was Sister Kearns' birthday so we celebrated by playing sand volleyball again and then went to Disney Springs and exploring some of the Disney hotels nearby. We got some of the tastiest pizza I have ever had.

Later that same night, we had a really big miracle! We were going to have a lesson with some of our favorite people but they ended up not being home, so we decided to go visit a member of the ward. We knocked on her door and she said we were an answer to her prayers! Her daughter moved to Utah a while back and left her with the grandkids until she can save enough money to move the whole family out there. It's been really hard for this sister. We were able to share a spiritual thought that helped her a lot and then the next morning we filled a storehouse order for them and brought all of the food to their house!

Then we had District Council which was so great! I don't even know how to explain it but wow missionary work is taking off here in Orlando. DC is so motivating and I love my district so much. The Cluffs, a senior couple, gave such a good lesson about recognizing the spirit, and it was exactly what I needed. I'm so grateful for them. They are finishing their mission here soon and I'm so sad to see them go. 

We had interviews on Wednesday with President! Sadly these will be our last interviews with President Ashcraft. He's one of the most incredible people I've ever known. We had a really good talk! I told him how much I love this ward and how I never want to leave. I'm really really hoping that I stay another transfer here, so if you could all keep that in your prayers it would be greatly appreciated!! I also talked to him about extending! It's not a sure thing yet, but basically instead of going home at the beginning of April I would be able to stay until the end of May! We'll see. It's something I'll have to discuss with President Schmiel when he gets here. So also pray that I can know what to do!!

That same night we had a really incredible lesson with our new friend Reyci, as well as Rocío and Victoria. Reyci came to us because another missionary found him on Facebook and he wanted to come to our English classes. But he's seriously so prepared for the gospel! He loves reading so he's super excited about the Book of Mormon. He also has such an open heart. Rocio and Victoria are still having a hard time knowing if the Book of Mormon is true, but they have so much faith and they love us a lot! Please pray for them so that they can better recognize the spirit. 

Thursday was also great! We always do storehouse on Thursday which is really fun. Sometimes it can be really chaotic and draining but I really like working for some reason so I'm grateful that we get to "go to work" once a week. 

That night, we were supposed to eat dinner at a member's house but they called us last minute and told us to meet them at a Mexican restaurant they wanted to go to. We got there and the vibes were simply immaculate. They were playing a bunch of my favorite Spanish music from back home (not reggatón, it was the holy stuff I promise), and the food was so good! This family works in real estate and she brought a friend from work and we talked about economics and finance for like half the time with I LOVED. The other missionaries didn't understand what on earth was going on because they don't understand finance in English, let alone in Spanish haha. I don't know how to describe it to make it sound as fun as it was, but I promise it was so fun. It was just such a unique combination of conversation and music and food and people and all of it was so good. We also met a lady while we were waiting for the bathroom and we hyped her up because she was on a first date! So many random little things but they're all so good. 

We went on exchanges on Saturday! It was really fun. I was with Sister Mills, which was fun because I came in with her, and we were in the same hotel room the first night! We had a really good lesson with their friend Christian! He has such a strong testimony. It was fun to be in a different area but it definitely made me appreciate the area I'm in. I learned a lot and I'm hoping to remember everything I want to change so I can become a better missionary!

Okay you guys. Sunday. It was the best day of the week for sure. English class was actually fun for the first time in a while. We taught them how to pray in English and it warmed my heart up so much. We had a bunch of the people we're teaching there and they're all so awesome. One of our friends showed up late because he was working and when he got there he was all dressed up in mariachi clothes and he had his violin because apparently that's what he does for work haha. After class we went to Sacrament meeting and wow wow wow it was so awesome. Testimony meeting is my favorite thing ever. Our ward is so incredible. Our friends just ate it all up. I wish I could tell you about each of them but there is seriously so much going on in this area I can barely take it all in. But you guyssss. These people are all so ready. Miracles are happening everywhere and I can't even internalize all of them. It's like if you were playing catch with someone and doing a good job at catching the ball, and then out of nowhere they throw a second ball at you so you have to catch them both. Except in this case God is throwing the balls and it's actually not two balls. It's like Buddy the Elf in a snowball fight. The miracles are coming to us faster than we can receive them. 

We had a linger longer after church which was so YUMMY and so awesome for a million other reasons. A bunch of our friends came to it and the ward welcomed them so well!! Also one of the boys in this ward who has become like a brother to me got his mission call!! He's going to Colombia!!! He's going to do so well and I feel like a proud big sister and ahhh my heart is so full. 

After the linger longer we went with a couple member families and 3 of the people we're teaching all went to someone's house to talk about the gospel. The spirit was so strong!! It was actually our first lesson with all 3 of them but we felt really good about putting one of them on date, although we were utterly unsure about the other 2 because we had hardly ever talked to them before. But before we went to the lesson Hermano Martinez pulled me aside and told me I needed to be bold and invite them to be baptized as well. I was so nervous before the lesson but also so excited. I was really trying to be in tune with the spirit because that's something I've been working super hard on lately, and also extending a baptismal invite is not just a casual conversation most of the time. It's been a while since we've had anyone who has been ready so it was so refreshing to have people who are ready! But anyway I definitely felt the spirit and it only got stronger as the lesson went on. We extended a baptismal invitation at the end of the conversation and they all said yes! It wasn't even a "maybe" or a "sure" or anything like that. Each of them said "yes." It was so powerful and the spirit was so strong and I'm so very excited for each of them! Keep Alba, Alejandra, and Jesús in your prayers as they prepare to be baptized.

Small Plates 

God is good.

I don't even know how to explain to you just how happy I am. The spirit is so strong. My heart is so full. Life is so good. God is so good. I literally could not think of anything more powerful to share than all of the experiences I had this week. I only wrote about 10% of what I wanted to, but I only have so much time and finger strength. This church is true. Jesus Christ is at the head of His church. God has a perfect plan for each of His children. Miracles happen in our day. I love missionary work, and I hope that my imperfect attempt at sharing my experience with you helps you feel the love that I feel for this Gospel and for Christ's Church. 

Hermana Jackson