From 3/24/14
My beautiful family!! I hope you are all doing great. Mondays are always a day I look forward to....for obvious reasons. :P I have only been able to read those who wrote early, but I´ll be printing and reading the rest later today. Usually Mondays I print the emails about 10am, which is 7am our time I believe. Then I read them as we go about our day and email 4:30-ish, or 1:30 your time. So, take that to heart hehe.
Ashley is training!!! Wooo. Crazy life we´re living hermana mia. I am so happy for the progress you´ve made and are making. I've felt very similar sentiments about members as missionaries. We´ve been exerting ourselves to be able to carry our investigators and less actives from beginning to end. But, it´s impossible to keep going this way successfully. We need the members of the ward. We need everyone. And that´s what the Lord asks. Anything helps. But like Ash said, if you take that initiative to the missionaries, you will be blessed tremendously. That´s also a promise from the Lord.
And Dad, "hastening the work" is not just a snappy catch phrase hahah. I love the way you said that. Bishop Pace is a great example of what the energy behind missionary work should look and feel like. Being here, I feel a certain energy brewing in the air. It´s almost as if, like what Mom said, the spirits on the other side are preparing the work. We are just setting up the instruments and means for this work to explode in full force in the future. I feel like the battle between both sides is going to be ever more prominent. And all attention, from us as members as well as those not within the church, will turn to this battle. There is something brewing in the atmosphere. And it is coming quickly.
One thing I was thinking this week was that I sure got the "best of both worlds" between Mom and Dad. I don´t know how I got so lucky. But I keep feeling like the balance that I grew up with has helped my understanding with the behaviors of so many people. And therefore, how to be a positive influence for them.
Last week, we found out that that person I saw, or maybe it was someone else, was actually not a good one. I'll share briefly. One morning Hna C woke up and saw someone tall standing in the space between our beds. He was standing with his arms clasped and looking at me. She couldn´t speak for a moment, but when she was able to call out, "compañera!" and I responded back a "que?" the persona moved swiftly toward the door and vanished. Her heart was beating quickly and we said a prayer before going back to sleep. Our zone leaders were able to bless our home and we´ve felt at peace since then.
Just yesterday, we were visiting a less active family. Afterward, we began to leave the "driveway" of the house and one of them came out to ask us something. He had questions about some scripture in the Doctrine and Covenants. We began to address it and redirect him to the doctrine. But, as we spoke, we began to feel very dark. I know when there´s an evil influence because I begin to feel a little antsy and uncomfortable. We cut the conversation and left. There was something very wrong and his eyes showed it. Both Hna C and I felt it as we walked home. And I even noticed that I felt very irritated and angry for no reason until we went to bed at night.
The influence of the adversary is everywhere. I don´t mind sharing this with you just to prove the point, that the guerra that Mom was talking about is real. Very real. But we know how this battle ends. I feel that the Lord has a lot to conquer still, and as we work for Him, we will have the experience that the sons of Mosiah did in Alma 26. The enemy has no power here. Because the Spirit and authority of God is with us.
This week ¨my group¨ also has verificacion to see how we´re doing. We visited the Panecillo in Quito, which is a historical place. This is where Elder Spencer W Kimball offered the dedicatory prayer in 1965, to initiate the mission work in Ecuador. In the prayer, he said, "They have waited so long, our Father, for the gospel to come to them..." In obtaining permission from President Mackay to begin the work here, he commented to Pres Mackay, "I believe that the time has arrived for the Lamanites to hear the gospel." And President Mackay agreed.
There are millions of blood Lamanites (natives) here, according to President Kimball. It was inspiring to look over the city, farrr into the distance, and know: that this is true. And that I am here.
Ashley is training!!! Wooo. Crazy life we´re living hermana mia. I am so happy for the progress you´ve made and are making. I've felt very similar sentiments about members as missionaries. We´ve been exerting ourselves to be able to carry our investigators and less actives from beginning to end. But, it´s impossible to keep going this way successfully. We need the members of the ward. We need everyone. And that´s what the Lord asks. Anything helps. But like Ash said, if you take that initiative to the missionaries, you will be blessed tremendously. That´s also a promise from the Lord.
And Dad, "hastening the work" is not just a snappy catch phrase hahah. I love the way you said that. Bishop Pace is a great example of what the energy behind missionary work should look and feel like. Being here, I feel a certain energy brewing in the air. It´s almost as if, like what Mom said, the spirits on the other side are preparing the work. We are just setting up the instruments and means for this work to explode in full force in the future. I feel like the battle between both sides is going to be ever more prominent. And all attention, from us as members as well as those not within the church, will turn to this battle. There is something brewing in the atmosphere. And it is coming quickly.
One thing I was thinking this week was that I sure got the "best of both worlds" between Mom and Dad. I don´t know how I got so lucky. But I keep feeling like the balance that I grew up with has helped my understanding with the behaviors of so many people. And therefore, how to be a positive influence for them.
Last week, we found out that that person I saw, or maybe it was someone else, was actually not a good one. I'll share briefly. One morning Hna C woke up and saw someone tall standing in the space between our beds. He was standing with his arms clasped and looking at me. She couldn´t speak for a moment, but when she was able to call out, "compañera!" and I responded back a "que?" the persona moved swiftly toward the door and vanished. Her heart was beating quickly and we said a prayer before going back to sleep. Our zone leaders were able to bless our home and we´ve felt at peace since then.
Just yesterday, we were visiting a less active family. Afterward, we began to leave the "driveway" of the house and one of them came out to ask us something. He had questions about some scripture in the Doctrine and Covenants. We began to address it and redirect him to the doctrine. But, as we spoke, we began to feel very dark. I know when there´s an evil influence because I begin to feel a little antsy and uncomfortable. We cut the conversation and left. There was something very wrong and his eyes showed it. Both Hna C and I felt it as we walked home. And I even noticed that I felt very irritated and angry for no reason until we went to bed at night.
The influence of the adversary is everywhere. I don´t mind sharing this with you just to prove the point, that the guerra that Mom was talking about is real. Very real. But we know how this battle ends. I feel that the Lord has a lot to conquer still, and as we work for Him, we will have the experience that the sons of Mosiah did in Alma 26. The enemy has no power here. Because the Spirit and authority of God is with us.
This week ¨my group¨ also has verificacion to see how we´re doing. We visited the Panecillo in Quito, which is a historical place. This is where Elder Spencer W Kimball offered the dedicatory prayer in 1965, to initiate the mission work in Ecuador. In the prayer, he said, "They have waited so long, our Father, for the gospel to come to them..." In obtaining permission from President Mackay to begin the work here, he commented to Pres Mackay, "I believe that the time has arrived for the Lamanites to hear the gospel." And President Mackay agreed.
There are millions of blood Lamanites (natives) here, according to President Kimball. It was inspiring to look over the city, farrr into the distance, and know: that this is true. And that I am here.
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| Tiffany's dad says, "No comment..." |
I love you all! Can´t wait to read the last-minute-ers. heheh. Take care and have a great week! Take up the challenge and talk to your ward missionaries! Share uplifting stories with them. Pray for them. Offer your support. That´s the prayer of a missionary!
Also, I love my companion. When she´s sick and there´s nothing I can do....it´s the most terrible thing ever. She´s a sister to me. Like Hna P (Ashley's former companion), I´m pretty sure she was accidentally born into a Peruvian family instead of ours. haha
Love,
Hna Fernelius
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| One more transfer - 6 more weeks - with Hna C!!!! Our only "cambio" was changing to a new house since a pair of Elders is coming to our area! The work is growing people! That´s THREE missionary companionships now for our ward. MUAHAHAHA. And Hna C and I are happy with our new home.....it has a lavadora for our clothes!!!!! :] |
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| Moving stuff for our new house! |
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