Waterfalls

Galletas and 'Guanas

Translation: Thanks for your help in missionary work!

Look what we found in the church!
EDITOR'S NOTE/COMMENTARY: Is it just me or does anyone else
find it ironic that they are teaching anatomy terms and find the perfect model?!

Week 49

HOLAAAA!!

Well I have sure enjoyed this week! As you can see from the pictures, it was an exciting one! Full of iguanas during english class, exploring more waterfalls, and getting to know more of our area. SO we are now in charge of ALL of Estanzuela. SO that has been fun!! It is the best because there are new things everyday, but I have my same companion, and the same investigators. It is the best of both worlds! AND we moved houses!!! We are now in the Elders' old house! It is much nicer! And we have water ALL DAY LONG!! AND we have a shower!!! Before we had to pour water over our heads from a pila.... It's in the little things folks!  

Well this week Olga is getting baptized!!! She is so excited!! We were able to get her mom to say yes this week!! Well we didn't actually do anything. Carlos (the older brother that got baptized 3 weeks ago) he just talked to her, and bore his testimony to her and she said YES!!! 

Carlos is doing so well. He is just soaking up EVERY part of being Mormon. And yesterday in our Sunday School class with the youth we did some practices about how to explain Joseph Smith, and I almost cried when he was acting as the missionary. He bore such a sweet and sincere testimony. And it really helped me strengthen my testimony that the Spirit teaches so much better than us!! And Carlos told the seminary teacher this week when she asked what he is going to do as soon as he finishes school this year, and he said he just wants to go on a mission. :)

Well thank you mom for sending me that recipe for no bake cookies. EVERYONE here loves them. SO we started to give them to the people that go out on visits with us. And they all end up asking us how to make them!!

Ponderizing: 2 Nephi 24:3

LOVE YOU ALL! And I am living up my last day being 19! (my companion told me as we left the house that I looked like it was my first day of school! So in honor of my siblings who DID have their first day of school today, here is a classic First day of school pic) 

-Hermana Garrett

Our Last Zone Picture

Empanadas, "Bolshas," ... Guatemalan tikka masala & spaghetti

Empanadas in the shape of flowers and butterflies!!!
How else do you eat them?!

 It rained a TON this week! :) We used these bad boys!!

We had divisions one day and the other sisters used them too! It is going to be a thing! :)

Week 48

HOLAAAAA!!

So it was another great week! 

-We found a new young couple.... they are 17 and already have a baby. But they are really great and accepted to get baptized in October! They were both crying by the end of the lesson. :) 

-We went exploring in a new area of Estanzuela, and we found a less active and his new wife. She was all excited about hearing more about our church, and that got him excited, and it was a great lesson, and then they told us that they live in the area of the Elders, and we were like noooooooooooooo :) But we told the Elders about them, and we will see what happens!

-Yesterday we had made plans to have so many people at church. Like 10 had commited to going and we had members that went to pick them up, and out of the 10 only 2 came, and they were Olga and Edgar, 2 of the teenagers that always go to seminary. So we were sitting there a little bummed, when in walk 2 old investigators that we hadn't talked to for over 6 weeks! Andri (14 yrs) and Astrid (8 yrs). And they just came because some other teenager had invited them! It was such a tender mercy!!

Ponderizing: 2 Nephi 10:23 I love the fact that we are always free to choose!!

Love you all!!

-Hermana Garrett

Friends and Foes (aka scorpions!)

So we killed this stinker... He was in our kitchen, right next to the sink.
That made for an eventful night. :)

OKAY they are just the best!!! And now Edgar (center) wants to get baptized!!

Week 47

HOLAAA!!

Well this week flew by!!! Here are some highlights!

We had 2 divisions this week! They went super well, and we learned a lot! We were able to go to the area of one of the Sisters. It is so neat when you can like feel the Spirit in an area. Like that area just radiates! We found lots of people who were just ready to listen to us! 

Well it has been raining a TON! And one day we weren't ready for it! So we bought black trash bags and put them on like shirts! Our investigators sure liked it! They have named them our BOLSHAS!* :) And the drunk men in the street still told us that we were pretty! With black trash bags on! :) That´s when you KNOW they are crazy! :)

It was pretty neat, the other night we were heading to go contact in an area, and I just got a little prompting to take a certain street, and as we were walking a lady stops us and asks us where the church was. Turns out she and her family were here visiting friends and wanted to go to church, but they couldn't find our building on the website. They are members in another part of Guatemala. That was a nice tender mercy, and a great reminder to follow every prompting!

We got out of a lesson the other day and my comp was like, "Hermana, the gift of tongues is real." And I was like, "yes, Hermana, it is." And she was like, "no, Hermana, in this lesson you were talking perfect Spanish. She understood everything. And for a moment there I forgot that you were American!" I know that I am still getting LOTS of help with the whole Spanish thing. I am so glad that I have the opportunity to see the Lord's hand in my life EVERY DAY!!! 

We had a lesson with Melvin and we brought along Carlos. He was so great, and he has such a strong testimony!! I feel so blessed to have been able to be a part of teaching him and Jorge. They went to the temple this week and had a wonderful experience. They were asked Sunday to share their testimonies, and it brought the Spirit so strongly to the meeting. They both act and talk like they have been members for forever. And they only have 1 week as members. And they both got the Priesthood this week!!

We also found 2 women this week that are SO ready!!! They are answers to many prayers!! We will see how things go this week with them!

OH and Edgar (friend of Jorge and Carlos) has been going to seminary for over a month. He went all the way to the temple just to sit outside. The branch president invited him to go, and we didn't even know! Haha, but he loved it! And then he went to church yesterday, and last night asked us if and when he could get baptized!!!! He has a date for October 8th!!!

Ponderizing: 1 Nephi 17:15 Wherefore, I, Nephi, did strive to keep the commandments of the Lord, and I did exhort my brethren to faithfulness and diligence.

Well I sure love you all!!!

-Hermana Garrett

*NOTE: bolsha = bolsa (bag) + shirt :) they like trying to speak English! :)

SuRpRiSe Baptism & Confirmation (Carlos)

Look where we went today!!

In the bus from the capital

Visit to Los Amates and Converts

Week 46

HOLAAAA!!!!

Well this week was a great one! IT FLEW BY!! And well I don't have much time to explain everything, so here is the quick run-down.

-Monday we traveled to the capital (and we were able to stay with all the hermanas líderes! That was so fun!!!)

-Tuesday we had cocilio. It nwas amazing, we focused all on baptism and the Book of Mormon. We are reading as a mission 2 chapters a day so that we can finnish before Christmas. After concilio, I lost my agenda... that was fun! haha

-Wednesday: Well after we had been so focused on baptism in concilio, we prayed and felt like Carlos should get baptized Friday... so what did we do??? WE LET MIRACLES HAPPEN!!!! It was so awesome! We got on the phone and started making calls to get a baptismal font brought to our church building, got our district Leader to come and do the interview THAT DAY, and then we started calling all of the members to inform them and to get people to commit to going.

-Thursday, We had divisions with some hermanas, and it was awesome! We met tons of new investigators, and were able to do so many contacts. But not just regular contacts, they were all focused on baptism, and it was awesome! We are really getting everyone STOKED about baptism!!

-Friday WELL CARLOS got baptized!!! And it was so special. He was glowing after!!!!

-Saturday, we had the first ever return missionary of the branch come home! SO they threw a big party!!! And the boyfriend of my ex-comp showed up! (he is related to the president of the branch!) And he brought me peanut butter! It almost made me cry of happiness!!! :)

-Sunday, Carlos got the Holy Ghost, and Olga went to church! She is so great! And is making so many sacrifices to be able to get baptized!!! She is my inspiration! :) 

TODAY!!! So then today we were able to go back to Los Amates as a zone for preparation day!! And I was able to see some of our converts and members that were there in the fincas (farms)! It was like a ton of tender mercies! Like everyone was passing by or going to work just a the right time that we caught them all like out on the street! It was amazing. Tender mercy.

Ponderizing: Helaman 5:7 

Therefore, my sons, I would that ye should do that which is good, that it may be said of you, and also written, even as it has been said and written of them.

Well this is my motivation to just simply BE GOOD!! We all want people to say nice things about us, so let's give them some good things to say. Sometimes it is hard on the mission because everyone tries to find faults in us and our church, but if we are simply good people, it is a lot harder for them! :)

Well love you all!!!! Have a great week!

-Hermana Garrett

Jorge's Baptism

FHE & Hna. Elizondo in pants!

FHE with the Palma family

I got my comp to wear pants! (Thanks mom for sending me more!)

Week 45

HOLAAAAAAA!!!

So this week went so well! We had so many ¨tender mercy¨ moments. Here are some highlights:

-We had Jorge´s interview on Wednesday. He came out and pretended like he hadn't passed. He thought he was pretty funny :) But then he was just beaming so we knew it wasn't true! After, the District Leader met with his siblings and really helped them get excited for their baptisms. But then we had to try to find an oven so that we could make mint chocolate cookies (at the request of Jorge) and then he also didn't have shoes to wear... so we were on a mad hunt for shoes and an oven Saturday! Just the stress that you don't want on the day of a baptism! haha 

-Well that being said, the baptism went so well. People came, but not too many (which is something Jorge didn't want haha ¨pero no quiero mucha gente!¨ ) And at the end of the baptism we left some time for people to share their testimonies, and Carlos and Olga got up, and it was just about the cutest thing ever!! :)

-Then on Sunday we had lessons on the Temple to help get everyone excited about the temple trip in a few weeks! Well Jorge and Carlos got really excited because their brother passed away a couple years ago, and now they really want to go and do the work for him!

-Last night Wilmer (Jorge´s brother) showed us around to all of his friends in the area! He will make a good little missionary! :) The whole family is just so great! :)

Well this week we also had a training for leaders, and then we also had interviews! So it was a fun week! And this week (well, today) we are going to the capital for Concilio (leadership council) tomorrow!!! 

Ponderizing: Moses 6:60 - "For by the water ye keep the commandment; by the Spirit ye are justified, and by the blood ye are sanctified"

Well love you all! Have a great week!

-Hermana Garrett