Week 8: Jocelin

Week 8: Jocelin

HOLA!!!!

Yesterday Jocelin Gonzales got baptized :) :) :) :) She is one of the first people I taught once I arrived here. This week was pretty chafa (a waste) and it could have been a really hard disappointing one because everything seemed to be going wrong but Jocelin. We had many lessons with her this week and had some really great experiences. After her Baptismal interview we were all so happy none of us knew how to express ourselves. We were like the people in Mosiah 18:11 clapping for joy. 

This is us right after her interview

So much has happened this week. This week was not the greatest and told one way it could be the story of the worst week ever but it didn’t feel that way. It had so many high points were we felt the spirit so strongly. We had to drop a lot of investigators who just weren’t progressing. It was especially hard to leave the ones I really like. I know how much the gospel can bless their lives and I can see how much they are already doing to have Heavenly Father's influence in their lives and they receive blessings for that but they need to take it one step farther. However I have faith that if I leave their registros (records) in the carpeta de area (area book) then one day a missionary will feel inspired to look them up when they are ready to make these changes in their lives. That is what happened with Jocelin who got baptized this sunday. She had been dropped by multiple elders but when we looked her up she was finally ready and she really did everything herself. 

Here is a picture at her baptism

 Here is a picture at her baptism. I love her so much it was really amazing to be able to help her in this process. I just look at her and see all the blessings she can now have in her life because of this decision. A Temple marriage, an eternal family, children growing up in a loving family where they recognize their divine potential and eternal life in the world to come with heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. I have never seen anything more beautiful :)

I love you all :) Hermana Lambert

p.s. (Yes it is starting to get really, really hot but I almost enjoy it because thus far it has been really cold and rainy almost everyday.)

Week 7: Illegal Love

Week 7:  Illegal Love

Hola Familia,

I’m starting to understand those missionaries who say they don’t write home because there is nothing to say... but I will give it a shot. 

I gave a talk on Sunday based in the Hymn Señor Yo Te Seguiré (Lord I would follow thee). It was great, I really felt inspired that this was the message the ward needed to hear. I talked about how we are all commanded to follow Christ and how we a want to serve and follow him. I talked about how to do that we need to do his work and DC 4:3 all those who have the desire to serve are called to the work. What is that work? Moses 1:39 the immortality and eternal life of man (aka missionary work). I talked about how missionaries need the members help and how we are here called of a prophet of God to serve them. How part of missionary work is helping our menos activa families come back to church. To finish It off I wanted to sing the hymn but I couldn’t make it through the whole thing. As I started the first verse I saw the little old lady’s in the back mouthing the words with me. On the second verse Hno. Perez Dominguez started singing along with me loud enough for everyone to hear. Good thing to because I had started to cry and could barely see the words on the page. But I stayed in strong till we got to the end and I had to stop after Señor. I tried to swallow my tears but couldn’t so I merely spoke the last words yo te seguiré. I couldn’t sing the last verse. I bore my testimony and went to leave the stand but before I could 10-yr old Alex the son of the Primary pres. ran up to me and gave me a wad of tissues. I heard from the ward that my Spanish was good and that they could all feel the spirit. Frankly I was a little embarrassed but they seemed to love it.

Yesterday we had an amazing lesson with this lady and her 2 children. But when we went to set an appointment for the next lesson she told us she was leaving Wednesday for the US. Her kids are citizens but she and her husband are not. She brought them back to Mexico so they could learn to read and write in Spanish but now they are going back to America because she knows there are more opportunities for them there. She is going to cross illegally and then go meet up with her children and husband in California. I wish I had time to tell you her story It really is so beautiful and romantic. I can’t encourage anyone to break the law but I am rooting for her in my heart of hearts and praying for her as well. Praying that she can be reunited with her family and that she can keep listening to the gospel in the states. She is so prepared and she totally agreed with everything we said. When we told her about the first vision you should have seen her eyes they were glued on us. She even already knew where a chapel was near where she lives in California because she saw it when she was there before and was curious. we are definitely going to pass her address to the office so they can send it over to that mission. Well Im out of time but I love you guys :)

Hopefully I will have more exciting stuff to tell you next week!

Cuidense mucho! Hermana Lambert

Week 6: 6,000 Tacos

District Selfie

P-day music video

Such color coordination!

Caught in the rain

Hola,

I spent most of my time writing people back since I got to call my family this week. If I didn't write you back I'm sorry but know I really love all the letters I get and I will try to write you back soon.

This week I was in the hospital for "appendicitis" but turns out in was just a bad gut infection of some sort. When we were checking out of the hospital my companion asked me how much I thought the bill was. I protested that I couldn’t guess.  I don't have any point of reference! I have never been in a hospital before. Then Hermana Stuz (the president’s wife) told me to guess in tacos. I immediately said 6,000 tacos. A taco costs 3 pesos, my comp quickly did the math and yes 18,000 is exactly how much our bill was. I guess my stomach knows how much a hospital should cost...

Earlier this week we had Zone conference (that’s where all the missionaries in our area meet with the president) and it was AMAZING! There was one part where the President was telling us that angels walk with us preparing those we will meet and talk to but also guiding us and helping. I felt so strongly I could almost see it the presence of my brother Moses sitting next to me on that pew. I know that as I walk these streets he walks them with me. I thought wow I am going to serve one mission but if Moses serves with all of us he is going to serve 6 or so missions. 

I love my family I am so grateful for all the love and support I get from you. There are so many examples in the scriptures of people remembering the teachings of their parents and it changing their lives (Enos, Alma the younger etc...) I feel like that everyday but it is not just my parents it is also my awesome Sunday school teachers (cough*cough* Millers) and Grandparents and young women's leaders. I have had such wonderful influences in my life :) Thank you!

Oh I almost forgot. Prez told me that I am going to be a trainer in 2 weeks. AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHhhhhhhhhhh (that’s the sound of my anxiety). She will probably be American so I really have to work on my Spanish before she gets here. 

Love you all, 

Hermana Lambert

Week 5: Knock and Ye Shall Receive

Week 5: Knock and Ye Shall Receive

Hola mi familia

      I have no time (as always) so here is a quick story. One of our investigators with a baptismal date (the one I sent a pic with) is having a hard time with lots of things in her life and wants a strong sign that baptism is the right choice. So Saturday we were fasting with her. It went really well she says she knows she needs to get baptized June 12 so we were thrilled obviously. When we went to break our fast at a member's house they had this awesome vegetable stir-fry Asian style, delicious but did not exactly fill us up. A few hours later we were starving. We were walking around in the rain knocking on door after door and "no one was home" the doors wouldn’t even open. 

 All of our appointments that were supposed to meet us at the church didn't come. As time went on we debated going to a member’s house to beg for food and discussed how close we were to fainting. We did meet up with one member to go teach a new investigator but the investigator "wasn't home" so we went back to knocking doors by ourselves. By 8:30 it was almost time to go home but we decided to knock one more door before we went back to our apartment.

  This door was a reference we had knocked on several times before in the week and had never opened. We knocked 3 or 4 times and no one answered then I looked at the door and practically commanded "knock and it shall be opened unto you, ask and ye shall receive" then knocked again. Nothing happened but I felt something. I felt like they were going to open the door. I knew something was going to happen. So we waited... and waited, nothing. My companion said it was time to move on. 5 more seconds I said. She counted to 5 slowly in Italian. Nothing. I still felt like the door was supposed to open but we began to walk away. When we were 20-30 feet away the door opened and we ran back. Probably scaring that poor lady. The guy we were looking for wasn’t there but his mom told us when we could come back and find him. I truly felt that it was a miracle predicated on my faith.
 So having had this one small victory in our day we headed back to our house planning to stop in with one menos activa [less active] family who lives right near our house. As we were knocking on their door the neighbor came out to say they had moved 2-3 days ago. As we turned to go home my heart sunk to a bit of desperation. I had been in pain from hunger for about 3 hours at that point and had been hungry for 6 but I had believed the lord would provide food for us. He always had before. 

 The first week I was here I did not have a peso to my name and my companion was broke from picking up her dry-cleaning. Hence no food. But when ever we had absolutely nothing at home random people, members and nonmembers alike would invite us in to dinner or give us bananas, mangos, apples, etc... But now we had knocked on our last door I could see our apartment and there was no food. At my apartment I had half a handful of chocolate chips and some oil and salt. I was so hungry.

  As I opened the door to our house who should greet us but our landlady and the first words out of her mouth "hola, gustan?" "Hello, would you like (some food)?" I was so grateful and hungry I didn't even protest I simply said "Si!” She sat us down and whipped out a hearty meaty soup with beans and tortillas and lemon tea to finish it off. She truly is a life saver. I love that lady. 

 We shared a hymn with her before we went up stairs to our room, which counted as our first and last lesson of the day. I am so grateful for all the good people, all the Dona Eps of the world. Yesterday was hard but the week was good I just wanted to share with you all how I see the Lord's hand in my life. I am so grateful to my loving heavenly father who knows my needs :) I love your letters. I'm so sorry I don't really write you guys back individually.

Con mucho amor,

 Hermana Lambert