Back to the City

Large Plates 

Good lessons, one of which was co-taught by a General Authority. God answering prayers I never even prayed, and transfer news (yes, again already).

Here's some highlights from this week!

We had a lesson with our 90-year old retired pilot friend Leo, and the Budges. The lesson was wonderful, and the Budges were so great to have there with us! Not only is Brother Budge an avid pilot, but the two of them are wonderful teachers. While we were there, I couldn't help but think, "wow, they've got a knack for this whole teaching thing!" Well, come to find out: it was announced this Sunday at Stake conference that they will be serving as mission leaders in the Côte d'Ivoire mission next year!! I told them on Sunday that that might make me consider serving a second mission so they can be my mission leaders haha. 

The night after Leo's lesson we had a pretty cool miracle! We were doing some Facebook finding and I was talking to this sweet lady named Martha. We had a really good back and forth conversation about faith! She said she loves Jesus and doesn't have a ton of friends, especially the kind who help her stay close to God. She goes to a zoom Bible study twice a week, but she told me she wants to learn more about the Book of Mormon. Well, come to find out she lives in my old area, Horizon West, where my old companions Sister Jackson and Sister Peterson are now serving!! I sent them her information and they reached out. The next morning they called her & she asked if they could just meet at the church. They did a church tour and Book of Mormon study with her and she loved it!! She's already reading the Book of Mormon, in Spanish to learn about it, and in English to learn English! So cool. 

On Wednesday we had a meeting in Orlando, which meant a road trip!!! The drive is a little over an hour, if traffic is good. So me and Sister Rubio turned on some good old Book of Mormon audio and hit the road bright and early so we could get there by 8. We had a good meeting, for her training, and walked away feeling motivated but overwhelmed haha. Training can be tough, cause sometimes I feel like I'm not telling her or showing her everything I need to. We were pretty tired after that, and both of us have been a bit under the weather, but we carried on! We went to District Council and gave a training which I felt like we learned more from than anyone else. With that spiritual boost, we finished out the night strong. We had a great lesson with Jean and Brother Rogers (more on them later) a call with Billy, and dinner with the Jaussi's.

The rest of the week was a bit slower due to me and Sister Rubio both being in less-than-ideal health haha. We still had a great phone lesson with Billy! He is opening up more and more and you guys!!! He's feeling and recognizing the spirit!!! He told us that he tries to just read a page of the Book of Mormon but every time he does, he can't put it down. He reads at least 10 pages every time he picks up the book. He even had a dream about reading! Crazy. He has a long way to go in his progress but he really is progressing and it has been so fun to be a part of. 

This is kind of a random miracle but on Thursday I told Sister Rubio that I wanted to try this Italian place on the Island and that same night our friend Veronica messaged us and asked us if we wanted to meet her, her son, and Veronica's member friend there on Friday! We went and it was delicious. We had a little lesson after in their car, and she seems very curious about the Book of Mormon. We're excited to keep meeting with her and helping her learn more! She's really smart, so it's going to be really fun, but really challenging to teach her. 

Saturday was tons of fun. We had to get an oil change in the morning, and when we went we met a super duper inactive member! He still isn't ready to come back to church, but hopefully we were able to plant a good seed. We went to the mall that afternoon and talked to a lot of cool people, and then we came home, ate our leftover Italian food, and headed out to the Adult Session of Stake conference! 

The adult session of stake conference may have been the highlight of my week. The first miracle was quite immediate. I really wanted to sit with our friends Jean and Brother Rogers so we could continue to fellowship them and so that we could help her understand what was going on. So I said aloud, "Sister Rubio, I sure hope we can find the Rogers." Before I had even closed my mouth they walked in the door. So awesome. Then, we walked into the chapel and the Usher guided us right to the front row, and sat us in the middle. That was perfect for Jean because then she could feel like she was the only one in the audience. 

Elder Bowen and Elder Galt, General Authority Seventies, were there to call a new Stake Presidency. The spirit was so strong and their talks were wonderful. Elder Bowen picked up on the fact that Jean wasn't a member, so he often directed his remarks to her. A good portion of his talk was about two very specific questions: 

"Are you a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints?"

"Why not?"

Needless to say, he had her attention.  After the rest of his wonderful talk. We made the very short journey to the stand to meet him. We said our hellos and then he Jean got into a very powerful conversation. Within mere moments Jean shared some of her biggest doubts and concerns with this total stranger. We had been trying to uncover those concerns for weeks. But, the reason that hadn't happened is because Heavenly Father knew she needed to open up to someone who could relate to her. One of her biggest concerns is that we don't baptize infants. She told that to Elder Bowen, and he responded so clearly and in such a Christlike way. He lost his little boy when he was 8 months old. He tells the story in a General Conference address, you should listen to it. They talked a moment about the principle of accountability and I think it really opened Jean's eyes and heart. We told her we would study it with her on Wednesday and we let Elder Bowen go to keep saying hi to the press of people that surrounded him. 

The Sunday General Session was great too! I got to translate!! Me, Brother Rusk, and Brother Bullinger all took turns translating from the Family History center. Honestly, I think that's one of the reasons Heavenly Father sent me here to Merritt Island: so I could see how hard and how fun live translation is. I think that might be something I want to pursue in the future. 

Speaking of God's plans for me: this week we got transfer news, and I'll be moving to the Valencia Spanish ward in Orlando! I'm so so sad to leave Merritt Island, but I'll be back to visit:) I really have loved this ward and the wonderful members. I hope they don't forget me, because I certainly won't forget them. It's sad to leave after only 6 weeks of being here, but I know it's God's plan for me, and I'm excited to see it all play out. 

Small Plates 

If you're going to pray for rain, you better bring an umbrella or that was a faithless prayer. 

One of my favorite random missionary activities this week was coordinating with an RM, a recent convert from who knows where, and the Blakes, some members of our ward. The RM, her name is Jocelyn, reached out to me on Facebook. She just happened to message me when I had just picked up my phone, so I saw the notification come in. She asked me if I could bring her friend Zerik, a recent convert, a Book of Mormon that he could give to someone!

I thought, "well gee, of course we can!" We got the information for the hotel and we saw that we weren't going to be anywhere near that area that day. But all was not lost! The Blakes, our knights in shining armor, had a spare Book of Mormon in their home, and were willing to take it to him! They went over about an hour after I got the initial message. So cool. 

We messaged Zerik in the midst of coordinating all of this and we asked him if he had met someone who he was giving the book to. We wanted to hear the story. This was his reply:

"Not yet but the lord guides me to who."

That's so awesome. This guy, new to the church, has such a great love for the Book of Mormon and such faith in its converting power, that he was certain there had to be someone he needed to give it to while he was on his beachside vacation. 

But that's not all. The Blakes asked us to replenish their Book of Mormon supply, meaning they probably have a similar attitude.  

All of the talks at Stake conference were wonderful. One overarching theme was the importance of opening your mouth. They shared stories over and over about the power of opening your mouth and allowing God to use you as an instrument in His hands. The thing is, He can't speak to people through you if your mouth isn't open. 

They invited us to take courage and open our mouths, and do so with firm faith that Heavenly Father will give us the words to say. They invited the Stake to pray for missionary opportunities, and that's where the line, "If you're going to pray for rain, you better bring an umbrella or that was a faithless prayer." 

He explained that if you really want Heavenly Father to give you missionary opportunities, you need to be armed and ready. Be like Zerik and the Blakes. Have a Book of Mormon on hand before you know who you plan to give it to. Carry a pass along card in your wallet with the missionaries number on it. Because you never know when Heavenly Father will use you as an instrument to give His children what they need. 

What I learned this weekend is that I will always have an extra Book of Mormon in my home, in my car, and in my suitcase anywhere I go. Because I, too, have such a great love for the Book of Mormon and such faith in its converting power, that I am certain there has to be someone I need to give it to while I'm on my beachside vacations, and at the grocery store, and everywhere in between.

New area, new companion, new ward, new experiences, and the Lord's same work!

New Companion- Sister Rubio

Large Plates 

New area, new companion, new ward, new experiences, and the Lord's same work!

Monday night we taught my last lessons with some of my favorite people! We had a video call with Rosalba, where we talked a little (and I cried a little). She said when she gets baptized she wants me to come, so I'm really hoping we can make that happen!!

After our call, we headed over to Graciela and Juseli's. It was kind of a strange visit, because Juseli was in the kitchen pretty much the whole time. We chatted with Graciela and Pablo for quite a while, and Juseli chimed in from the kitchen, which wasn't far away. Then, she finished up in the kitchen and I realized what she had been up to. She made us arepas! They were so good, too. We ate them and chatted about how good it has been to meet together and learn from each other for these last couple of months. Pablo said he's going to start learning and preparing so he can get baptized too! I told them I want an invite to their sealing a year after they all get baptized, so I'm pretty excited for that. I'm definitely going to miss them. In fact, I already do. But I know they're in good hands, with Sister Peterson and Sister Jackson:)

Tuesday was transfer day! I finished packing up the rest of my belongings, and we headed for the church. I sat in another trainer meeting, just like the one I had when Sister Jackson came to the mission! Then, all of the new missionaries came in and Sister Schmeil helped us all find our new companions! My new companion is Sister Rubio and she is an absolute sweetheart. She's from Southern California and she loves nature just like I do! 

From the Church, our adventure began. We took the hour drive out to our new apartment and let me tell you: this has gotta be the nicest missionary apartment in the mission. It was so clean when we got there, and everything is in such good condition. And there's so much counter space in the kitchen! I'll send a picture. 

We attempted to unpack a bit, but we had to leave to go get groceries before it got too late. The apartment had no food, except for about 30 cans of doctor pepper haha. We filled up our cart and dropped a fortune on restocking the pantry, and then headed back home to the utter chaos we had left behind. We spent the rest of the night unpacking and setting ourselves up for a good week!

Wednesday was definitely an interesting day. We had district council, which was so good because I got to see Elder Cash and Elder Harmer, who were in my district this same transfer a year ago! After DC, we stopped by a sweet member's house, Sister Smith's, and we helped her move a couple of things that were too heavy to move on her own. Then we sat down for a bit and heard her whole conversion story! It was really powerful. 

Wednesday was also the day we had our first non-member lesson! Except this was one of the strangest lessons I've had haha. We got a call from an Indian telemarketer and he asked if we wanted to sell our home or any other property to him. I said "no thank you. But, we're actually missionaries for Jesus Christ! Do you believe in Christ?" Which prompted a discussion about the Law of Moses and why it's okay to eat pig haha. He wasn't interested in learning more, but appreciated us sharing with him. 

Thursday we had such an amazing miracle!! We went to a park to do a bunch of phone calls as we figure out what's going on in the area, and we met someone there! We talked to him and found out that he is actually a member, and hasn't been to church for a long time. We got his name and phone number before he had to leave. Then, when we sat down after to continue working through some of the member lists, his name was right there! He's a prospective Elder and the ward has been trying to work with him for a long time, to no avail. But, we know he goes to the same park every day for his break, so we know where to find him;)

Friday was one of my favorite days for sure. Although we got bashed by a grumpy old member who has gone completely crazy, I'd still call it a good day. Why? What could make that day good? Well, you see. I have 2 new amigos cubanos!!! Which means I get to use my Spanish!! I made friends with a guy named Yoannis on Facebook, and I told him about the Book of Mormon. He was so intrigued, and wanted a copy. He lives outside of our area, so we had the Elders bring him a book. When the Elders got to his house, he let them right in to meet his whole family and tell them about the book!! The only catch is that neither of them speak Spanish haha. But! Elder Salden used his Portuñol and they had an awesome lesson. 

When we called him that night, like we had planned, he showed us his new book, and he was so excited about it. He thanked us for reaching out, and said something along the lines of "This book is so interesting, why don't you hear about it in Cuba?" Which broke my heart. I've grown really close to a lot of Cuban members over the last year, and my heart aches for their country. Yoannis then explained to us that his brother is still in Cuba, but he really wanted him to know about this book. We explained that missionaries can't go to Cuba, otherwise we would have them bring a book to his house, just like we did with Yoannis. He then asked if his brother could just join our video call. We said of course! His brother was so intrigued by the story of the Book of Mormon, and Yoannis explained to him what he had learned from us! My favorite thing is watching the people we teach teach someone else. Anyway, I'm really excited. Yoannis couldn't come to church yesterday because he was out of town but he's coming next week! 

Sorry, I know this is a long email. Good job if you've made it this far! Saturday was also crazy. We went to a Relief Society activity to try to get to know the ward, and we walked away with a homemade ornament, an advent candle, a tummy full of Christmas cookies, a couple of borrowed rakes, and a bunch of new friends.

Why rakes? We had a service project that day! This cute little old lady named Pat needed help cleaning up her yard after Hurricane Nicole. We went to do service with the Elders from the other ward in our building, and I found out that one of them went to Ridgeline! And he did choir, so he knows Mr. Baer! What a small world. I didn't know him, though, because he's a few years younger than me. 

Last but certainly not least, we were called by the Sisters in a different ward in our stake to come help them with a different service project!  This one did not involve rakes. We were in a parade! The Viera ward had a spot in the city's Christmas parade, and we went to hand out Church invites and candy canes. It was tons of fun, but wow I was tired after. I have no idea how many people I waved at or how many times I said Merry Christmas. But, hopefully lots of seeds were planted!! 

We went to bed nice and early Saturday night to prepare ourselves for Sunday! It was a big day–we were finally going to meet our whole ward! Sunday was a good day. Our ward is so awesome! The recent converts in this ward are actually Hispanic, and are learning English. So they need a translator every Sunday. Brother Rusk does the translation and he does an incredible job. I really like him and I really like Sandra and Valeri, my other new amigas. Everyone was so excited to hear that we had a Spanish speaking Sister in the ward!! Although it has been confusing for everyone because my companion, Sister Rubio, is Latina, but doesn't speak Spanish. Everyone thinks she's the one who does, so they ask her questions in Spanish, and then I have to translate or answer for her haha. She really wants to learn Spanish though! She was called to speak English, but is already picking up on a bit of Spanish, too! 

After church we had dinner with the Loftus family. They're a cute little family of 6! From there, we had a lesson in the car with our new friend Philip! He's very cool and really loves Jesus. 

We finished off the week with a Christmas devotional at Sister Nalley! She reminds me a lot of my aunt Miriam. So, you can say we enjoyed being in her home ;) She had a bunch of Charcuterie set out, and a few soups to try. We had just left a meal shortly before, but I was still hungry because it was Fast Sunday, so you already know I ate so much Charcuterie haha. It was a good way to end the night and to end the week. 

Small Plates

Christmas gifts

As I'm sure you have all noticed, the Christmas season is upon us. There's a lot of hustle and bustle, and a lot of talk about gifts at this time of year.

It's beautiful. We turn outward and think about those around us. We sacrifice time, money, and energy to bring joy to others. Ahh I love Christmas!!

I want you to imagine for a moment that you are a parent, and you want the perfect gift for your children. You go to every store and search day after day for something that would bring them all joy. After days of searching, you find it. The perfect gift. 

It's just one thing, but you know it'll make all of your kids happy. It will bring them more joy than anything else you could give them. They'll learn to love and appreciate it more and more with time. And as they share this precious gift with one another, each of them will feel more joy. It truly is the perfect gift.

Now take a step back. Put yourself in the shoes of the child. You have been given the perfect gift. 

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."

Christ is the perfect gift. Heavenly Father knew there was nothing more special He could give to us than His Only Begotten. 

And just as a good parent wants their child to appreciate and to share their Christmas presents, our Heavenly Father wants us to come to know and love His Gift, His Son. He wants us to appreciate that Gift, and to share it with everyone.

This Christmas season, come to know Christ better than you ever have. Share his love like you never have before. Make this Christmas season more meaningful than any before.

Rosalba

He turns fishers of men into shephards

Large Plates 

Finding, Thanksgiving bike fiascos, Portuguese exchange, Sunday morning miracles, and some crazy transfer news!

This week was CRAZY. We didn't have a ton of people we were teaching, because a couple of them got baptized, and then the other people we were teaching were too busy so we had to start teaching them. That meant that we did tons and tons of finding this week. Most of our finding in this area comes from knocking doors, which I don't mind. It's tricky in this area, though, because the Hispanics are harder to find. We either find an apartment complex with a lot of Americans, or one with a lot of Brazilians, and a few Hispanics. We tend to go to the Brazilian/Hispanic neighborhoods. It's been fun though! I've actually taught a lot of lessons in Portuguese, or maybe portuñol, but either way it's fun. 

Thanksgiving was also this week! Holidays on the mission are definitely strange. This Thanksgiving was basically just a normal proselytizing day, but with a little bit of flexibility. It was also the fist day Sister Peterson and I tried out our "new" bikes! I say new, because they are new for us. But they are certainly not new bikes. We're borrowing them from members until we finish our missions. Long story short, an ordinary 10 mile bike ride turned into a bit of an adventure, which included trudging through the wilderness of Florida, sprinting down busy roads in the dark for 20 seconds at a time, and a flat tire when we still had miles to go. Some Elders were so kind and drove to us and swapped one of their bikes so we could ride the rest of the way home. And then, when we got home, they had left a gigantic pecan pie on our doorstep! 

This Saturday, I got to exchange in the Portuguese area, which was so much fun. It was fun to practice my Portuguese with them, and help the sisters learn and grow a bit more! We went to 2 churrascos (Brazilian barbecues) and a Brazilian bakery! Once again, Latin food is so much better than American food. We ended off the day with Davi's baptism! He's someone the Portuguese Elders taught. It was such a good day, and you could say I definitely fell in love with Brazilian culture. 

Speaking of Brazilian culture, yesterday marks 1 year since I found a Portuguese Book of Mormon in my apartment, way back in training. Yesterday was also the day I finished that very book. My intention wasn't to finish it in a year, or in any specific amount of time, for that matter. I just wanted to read it to help me learn Portuguese, and that it did. It's kind of poetic that it worked out that I finished it in exactly a year, though!

The biggest miracle of this week was definitely Sunday. Graciela and Juseli's entire family came with them to church. We were expecting a couple of family members to accompany them, but no. Everyone wanted to come. And they all came and sat in the middle and loved church. Hermano Amyradakis gave the perfect talk about seeking first the Kingdom of God, and I think it really helped our new friends! Also, not only did their family come to church, but 2 other really awesome families! Hernan, who we were teaching a while ago, came with his kids and stayed for both hours. And, a family who Sister Peterson met, while I was in the Portuguese area, came too! Everyone loved it. 

This week was full of a lot of rejection, just due to the nature of us knocking on so many doors. But, it was possibly the most joyful week I have had on my mission. I just felt so filled with love. My favorite part of the mission is getting to know people, learning to love them, and falling in love with their stories and their culture and their food. 

The last thing I'm gonna tell you about before I write my Small Plates is transfers. Transfers are on Tuesday, but we don't know if/where we're going until Sunday night. I had a few ideas and lots of hopes for what would be happening to me, come transfer time. I really wanted to stay in this area and help teach and baptized Graciela and Juseli's family, and keep working with Rosalba and Hernan. Honestly I think all of them could be baptized in the next transfer. I've also loved being in mission leadership. I love helping the other missionaries learn and grow, and I love being in close communication with President and Sister Schmeil. If I had to leave, I was hoping to go serve in Portuguese work. President and I have talked about it a few times and he liked the idea. Speaking Portuguese terrifies me, but I knew that if I got put in Portuguese work, that Heavenly Father would help me. 

So, those were kind of the two options I've been fiddling with in my mind these days. Then, last night, as I was about to start reading the last chapter of the Portuguese Book of Mormon, actually, the APs called. 

They thanked me for my service as an STL, and told me I would be training. That's not what I expected, but I told them I was willing to do it. They then explained to me that my training would be a bit different. They said that I would be re-opening an area that hasn't had missionaries in it for a little while, and that I would be moving up to Merritt Island, by Cocoa Beach. And, that I would be serving in an English unit. My heart dropped. I love language work. I love culture. And I have to leave that all behind. 

Now, I'm not trying to be dramatic here. I'm honestly still wrapping my head around all of it. I'm scared, for sure. It's going to be a completely new experience. I've never served in English work before. Not only am I switching to English, but I'm getting a trainee and we're moving way far away from where I've ever served. And I don't get to be an STL anymore. Some tears were definitely shed. 

That being said, I'm excited. I told President I wanted to learn and grow, and although I imagined that meant he would put me in a new language and not in my native language. I know these next few months of training are going to be a learning process for sure. But hey! I get to live by the beach! Cape Canaveral is literally in my ward boundaries. There are going to be Cruise Ships parked in my ward. Crazy, huh? 

Small Plates 

He turns fishers of men into shephards 

It's funny, you know. Heavenly Father really likes to teach me. And I'm grateful for it. 

I was re-reading one of my books the other day and I learned something new from the author. I knew right then that that was what I was going to write about in my email for the week. 

The thing is, with these emails, I always learn more from writing them than any of you could possibly learn from reading them. I haven't even written it yet but I know Heavenly Father is about to teach me. I'm just letting the rest of you join me for the ride.

So, here's what I learned from the book. When the Savior called Peter to his apostolic ministry, he called a fisherman to be a fisher of men. Essentially He was saying, "Peter. You have strengths that can be used for my work. Come, and I will teach you to use what you already have and who you already are, to build up my Kingdom."

Peter worked alongside the Savior for a long time, and learned a lot from Him. He fine-tuned his strengths, and he surely acquired a few new ones along the way.

He was transformed from Peter the fisherman to Peter the Fisher of Men. He found a new, better version of himself. One that the Savior helped him discover. 

As the Savior's earthly ministry came to a close, He met once again with His disciples. He asked them a simple, yet thought-provoking question: 

"Lovest thou me?"

He asked it three times, too. He wanted them to be sure of their answer. 

"Yea, Lord."

What did he say next? He told Peter, the fisherman and Fisher of Men, to feed His sheep. Peter wasn't a shepherd. He was a fisherman. Yet, the Savior invited Him to join Him in His work, in His way.

Christ's first call for Peter was a call to become a better version of Peter. 

And that's what he did. Peter learned and grew, and strengthened his strengths with Christ's help. 

Christ doesn't just see us for who we are, though. He sees us for who we can become. He knows we can become versions of ourselves far better than who we are right now. He knows we can become even as He is. 

That's what He wants for us. So, that's what He does for us. He helps us learn and grow and He puts us in situations that make us stretch. He helps us move forward and upward. That's how I see it, at least. Helping Peter change from a Fisherman to a Fisher of Men was helping him move forward. He was improving. It's true. 

But that's not all Christ wanted of Peter. He wanted Him to move onward and upward. That's done through exalting grace. 

That's what He's doing with me, too. He's helped me move forward, so much. I know I've grown more in this last year than I have in my entire life. He has strengthened my strengths. Now it's time to discover some more of my weaknesses, and turn them into strengths, too. The Lord wants me to do His work in His way, not in my way. I'm not sure what that is going to look like. After all, I'm just a fisherman. I don't know how to herd Sheep. But I want to learn, because I want to be like Him who teaches me.