Californian A-Venturas: Twenty-fourth Week in the Field

Hola Todos!!

So many wonderful miracles happened this week! There was some unfortunate news though....Sister Appel had to go home because of all of the migraines that she'd been having. But, on the plus side, Sister Heslop got to join us and we had a trio all week!

Since Hermana Faletau and I were with Sister Heslop, we got to do a lot of English work as well. I know that because we were doing extra work, we were being blessed. We taught a lot of lessons combined and did a lot better on our declarations on average than we had in the past.

This week, we were finally able to get a hold of one of our referrals that we had received a few transfers ago. Her name is Marisol and we've been trying at least once or twice a week to get a hold of her since we received it. The other Hermanas had told us that she had committed to be baptized before she left Thousand Oaks. When we finally got in touch with her and set a return appointment, we found out that her and her husband have been through so much in their lives and want to come closer to God. When we met with them, the Spirit was really strong and we were able to teach one of the best Restoration lessons that I've been in for a while. They soaked everything up and wanted to keep learning more. We invited them to be baptized on the 11th of January and they committed to be baptized, but they said that the date was too early. We tried to explain to them that when we set goals we're able to have extra help from God, but they still wanted to think about it more. They are so golden and I'm really excited to continue teaching them.

We got to meet with Yesenia, one of our investigators with a baptismal date, this week as well. We had just met her last week and committed her to baptism, but when we came to visit her, she confided in us how stressful her life is and how she's trying to find more peace and joy. She had just gotten through a hard breakup and wanted someone to talk to, so we were able to give her some comfort by sharing Helaman 5:12 and explaining that if we turn to Christ, our trials will be easier to withstand. She loves it when we come over and teach her because she knows that she can feel the spirit.

We've been able to meet with Pablo a few times this week and every time we go, I always get so happy. It is kind of sad though because he talks a lot about how much he doesn't like where he lives because he family doesn't really care about him. He also talks a lot about how much he misses his wife. On the plus side though, he is still preparing to go to the temple to be sealed with her in 5 months! He's so excited for that!

Working with Sister Heslop this week has been great! She has such a strong spirit and desire to share the gospel with others around her. At first, I thought it would be a little hard being in a trio again, but it was a lot easier than I thought. It helped that we all already knew each other and lived with each other. Earlier this week before Sister Appel went home, Sister Heslop confided in me that she'd been fasting and praying to know what to do with Denisse. She told me that she felt like she needed to drop her for a while and, then, if Denisse is ready, start teaching her again later. It was really neat to see her be able to truly recognize inspiration for one of the first times in the mission field for her investigators. It also added to my testimony that dropping an investigator can be a good thing, not always bad.

We got to go visit so many of the English members because we were with Sister Heslop. We got to teach Nancy about the Plan of Salvation again because she's getting ready to go to the temple. We got to stop by Amie's house and sing to Lilly and Hunter again. We got to stop by and visit Brother Levine and see how he was doing...he's doing great! He has his recommend to finally go to the temple. He just hasn't gone yet...we don't know why, but we're still pushing for it. We also got to visit a few new investigators that they got since we left the ward. The best part (not quite, but almost) was that we got to eat Thanksgiving dinner at the Smith's house!! We actually had a Thanksgiving dinner and didn't have to go to Denny's! I was so excited to actually eat real food! It was really good too.

Also, because Sister Heslop joined our companionship, she got to go to the Spanish branch for church yesterday! She told us that she didn't understand anything that was going on, but she could feel the strong spirit that was there. We got to translate for her, but it worked out because all of the members practically just spoke English with her... :P In the Sacrament Meeting yesterday, the branch choir got to perform our song "Oh, Que Se Cosechara?" Even though the members aren't the best of singers, the spirit was really strong because you could feel them putting all of their heart into it. It was their way of sharing their testimonies. I love being a part of it! We also got to go to practice for the stake Christmas concert that's coming up in two weeks. The branch is singing "Feliz Navidad"... yes...that one...it's probably the most stereotypical Spanish Christmas song ever, but hey it's fun performing it with the branch.

OH YEAH! I forgot to mention that we got news about transfers! I get to stay in the branch!!!! I'm so pumped!!! Going on four transfers in Moorpark!! BUT, Hermana Faletau is leaving me :( She's going to Santa Paula AND she gets to be companions with Hermana Higgs!! When the zone leaders told us that, I was so jealous! They're going to be great! My new companion is Hermana Shepherd and she came into the field with Hermana Faletau. Life is great right now!

I'm absolutely loving it here in the field and am excited to still work here in Moorpark and in the branch!!! Thanks for all the love and support!!

Con amor,

Hermana Halliday