Christmas Love!

Hope you had a wonderful, Christ-filled Christmas. It was wonderful to talk to ya'll and see that everything is pretty much the exact same! 

This week was by far the best week in my mission! (maybe because it was the most recent, because I tend to think that every week.) 

Christmas eve we went caroling to a few rest homes with members in the ward and then we went over to one of the homes and had a huge Mexican feast. One family gave us Razorback blankets. They are so soft! Love mine.

Then on Christmas we were able to go to two different members homes and eat with them. I felt like I was at home. I feel that like everywhere here!!

We went to a less-actives home on Friday and we were able to Skype her friend that lives in Jordan. We were able to talk a little bit about the gospel to him. It was neat. We told him to download an Arabic Book of Mormon... so I hope the Church has it in that language! 

We have been teaching this lady named Misty. She is a single mom. (I think I have talked about her before) We found her by spiritual harvesting. (Knocked on her door) The first time we met with her she was super quiet and wouldn't say much to us. We took a member with us the second time and she opened up a little more with her. Then yesterday... SHE CAME TO CHURCH! She brought her twins (4 years old) and stayed all 3 hours. Everyone in the ward was so nice to her and had another lesson with her last night. She loved church and the only thing she is still hung up on is the Book of Mormon. She says she prays every night to know it is true. I LOVE her so much! She is so sweet!

We are teaching another guy. He is a referral from a lady in the ward. Its actually the members boyfriend, anyways.. we have taught him twice now and he has a baptism date. There are a few things we have to overcome with him before he is baptized, but last night as we were over there he said he wanted to make a schedule for reading the Book of Mormon. I asked him if there was a day he wanted to finish it by. He said well my baptism date is the 26th right? We said yes. And he said, "Ok because last time when I said Yes I would be baptized, I was 95% sure. Now I'm like 99% sure so I would like to finish it before then." We asked him why its gone up that 4% and he said through prayer and a feeling that he cant really describe. We explained that he was feeling the spirit and it was testifying to him that what he was doing was correct. Ah. It was such an incredible moment. 

We had a baptism in the Spanish branch yesterday as well. Apparently he was baptized in Mexico but his records can't be found anywhere so he was re-baptized. 

Also, I was able to finish the Book of Mormon again this last week! I love that book, and have such a strong testimony of the divinity and reality that the Book of Mormon is the word of God. I have gained such a stronger relationship with my Savior while on my mission and I know part of that has been because of the power of the Book of Mormon. 

That's about it for my week, thanks for all of your support, and love towards me! LOVE YA'LL!

Hermana Warner 

quote for the new year! 

"I am so thoroughly convinced that if we don't set goals in our life and learn how to master the techniques of living to reach our goals, we can reach a ripe old age and look back on our life only to see that we reached but a small part of our full potential. When one learns to master the principles of setting a goal, he will then be able to make a great difference in the results he attains in this life."     -Elder M. Russell Ballard

pictures!

1. our new blankets and headbands

2. me and my companion with a family in the ward.

3. cutest under stair bathroom!

5 months!

Hola Familia,

First, today is my 5 month mark. Its crazy how fast the last 5 months have been. I still remember going and getting Hokulia right after I had been set apart, (oh how I miss those) and then leaving for Mexico the next morning and starting this amazing journey. I wouldnt trade the last 5 months for anything in the world!

It was a busy week, filled with many Christmas activities. We were able to go to a Christmas dinner for the Relief Society, a ward Christmas party, and a choir concert for the one high school here in Russellville.

We met a lady this week whose name is Misty. She is a divorced mom with 4 kids. (ages like 17, 11, 6, and 3.) We were able to teach her the first lesson and she was very receptive.

We were also able to meet this guy named Wesley. He is on the College Football team here in town. We were also able to teach him, but he is going home for the Holidays so we wont be able to see him for a while.

We met another family this week that the Elders had tried to teach before but the husband was always gone and therefore they could never teach the mom. However, we went over there and the little 9 year old girl had been reading the Book of Mormon almost every day and was in Jacob. I love little kids. She is so cute and she is key to getting her whole family baptzied. 

One day this last week my comapnion and I went to a mexican resturant for dinner. (great finding place) We were able to talk to the waiter for a long time about the church. He continued to give us more chips so we would keep eating and not leave. He didnt give us our check for like 20 minutes after we were done though. However, when he did he had his email on thier so we could write him and answer questions he had. (He was genuinly intrested in the church.. I Promise!!) It's awesome that where ever we go, we can always find a teaching moment and be sharing the gospel.

That's all for today,

love ya'll!

Hermana Warner

oh yes. one more thing... this lady asked us if our church buys diapers for little kids. It was one of the many different questions we get asked every day. 

Exchanges, Weather and More!

Hola Familia!

Tuesday I was able to go on exchanges English speaking to Conway. (about 1 hour away) I went on exchanges with Sister Benson. This is so crazy... but we played basketball against each other. No joke. It was so strange. I don't know what it is, but maybe the Lord is teaching me to love my rivals. She played for Maple Mountain and Westlake. She is super sweet, and we had a great time. It was way different teaching in English as well. (so much easier)

It snowed here in Russellville. Apparently it rarely snows here, and if it does the town shuts down because they don't have snow plows to clear the snow. Also here in Russellville they have ice storms. 

Starting about Tuesday we starting hearing that there was going to be a HUGE storm that weekend. Everyone was telling us to go to the store, to get food, flashlights, blankets, etc. They were saying prepare for the worst. They said power could be out for days. We decided to go to the store to stock up a little and I've never seen a store so depleted. There was like 5 loafs of bread left, everyone was panicking and was shuffling through the store trying to get back home before the storm hit. A lot of our appointments were cancelled because of the storm. Friday we were not allowed to go outside. We were suppose to study inside all day and have companionship bonding... After we studied for a while we decided to make companionship bonding more adventurous and so we went SLEDDING with a family in the English ward and some of the Elders. There was MAYBE 2 inches on the ground when we went sledding but it was so fun! 

Saturday we were again not suppose to drive... however, the roads looked fine and we were able to teach some people and we met a new guy named Cipriano. We met him at a Mexican store/restaurant. As we were driving over there we said a prayer asking to put someone in our place or to meet someone at that store who would be ready to hear the gospel. We were in there for a minute and we started talking to this one man. We sat down with him and talked to him for about 30 minutes. He is from Mexico, but lived in California like 17 years ago. As we were talking he said that 2 Elders had taught him, he had been to church 2-3 times, had read the Book of Mormon, but was no attending a different church here. (He even said that he read the Book of Mormon before he read the Bible and that the Book of Mormon helped him understand the Bible.) However, we invited him to church as well as this week we are starting an English Class that he said he would come to. It was a miracle, and such an answer to our prayers. It again was such a great reminder that NO WORK IS EVER WASTED. (I just hope the Elders that taught him understand that too!)

Saturday night we got a call that church was going to be shortened just to sacrament meeting and that it would be combined with the English ward. The main roads were fine by now, and there was no storm predicted for the morning, but we went with it. Sunday morning we got a call that church was cancelled. It is now Monday, school was cancelled again and snow is still on the ground. Everyone is still hibernated in their homes. We have the roads to ourselves. Luckily we have had power, and have been safe. 

  

In my studies I was reading in Alma and really thinking about these righteous men/prophets and how much they had to go through as they were missionaries. It then made me think of Joseph Smith and everything he went though. Ultimately it made me think of our Savior and everything he went through. It really humbled me and made me think how good I really do have it. Yeah people reject the message, yes people shut their doors after 2 words of us talking, but I have been blessed and protected by the Savoir. I have it so much easier than those men. 

That's about it for the week, 

Love you all,

Hermana Warner 

~HAPPY DECEMBER!~

What a wonderful Thanksgiving week here in Russellville. I was able to enjoy both a Spanish style of Food for Thanksgiving as well as  traditional English dinners!

I was also able to play soccer on Thanksgiving with the English ward and the Elders in my district. I haven't played in so long (since the CCM) but it was so fun! My companion and I then watched them play in a Turkey Bowl afterwards. 

We were also able to teach some wonderful families and lessons. One lady asked me what I wanted to do when I got off my mission and I told her my major and then she said, "Can you help me?" Me being a missionary said, "Of course. I then pulled out a Word of Wisdom pamphlet and talked all about it." She read the whole thing by the next time we came and her only question was.... Can I have more of those pamphlets? We then gave her all the lessons in small little pamphlets to read. The next time we went she had read them all and is ready to live the standards and commitments of all of them. We just need her to come to church twice before she can be baptized. 

Tuesday was one of the hardest days (rejection wise) on my mission. Normally people are really kind when they don't want to listen to our message, or are not interested, but this day was something else. One door after the next. People would just open the door and then shut it without even talking to us. We would go up to someone in the street and they would say, "Oh heavens no" and quickly walk away. I knew however, that if we just kept going we would find someone prepared. I honestly think the Lord was just testing us to see if we would keep going, keep trying, keep our heads up. That night after dinner we had 2 appointments. Both fell through. However, that is when the miracle came. We felt impressed to knock on this door that we had passed several times. It was late at night and normally we don't knock on doors late at night but we decided to go and knock on it.  This lady answered and let us in. We started talking to her. Before we even got to far she says, "Where is your church? What time?" We told her and then she said, "OK I'm coming." She then had to go so we ended with a prayer. We asked her if there was anything that we could bless her with and she just started crying and said "Health". It was such a miracle to have knocked on her door and to have met this wonderful lady. 

It ended up being a wonderful day. 

It reminded me of a quote I love that says, "Learn to Love your struggles. You simply can't grow without them." We learned a lot that day, and I'm so grateful for that. 

I'm loving the opportunity I have to serve here in Russellville. The English ward here is helping us out so much. They have given us multiple referrals (which the English Elders HATE.. because we are "Spanish speaking" but most of them are ladies that apparently we might be able to better help.) The Spanish branch has maybe 50 people in it with about 30 people attending the past 2 weeks. It is very small so us missionaries get to participate a lot. 

Well that's about it for the week. Have a wonderful week,

Famous El Salvador dish called Pupusas. So good!

My district on Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving Day!